Motorists alerted as weather set to worsen

MOTORISTS ARE being warned to take care on the roads today as Met Éireann predicts “more of the same” bad weather on the way, …

MOTORISTS ARE being warned to take care on the roads today as Met Éireann predicts “more of the same” bad weather on the way, with heavy rain and gale force winds expected.

Meteorologist Aidan Nulty has predicted heavy rain and winds until late this evening with the worst weather expected in Connacht and Munster.

He warned that flooding may take place with between 20mm to 40mm of rain. “That much rainfall in isolation might not cause that many problems,” he said, but added that heavy rain over the last couple of days had left many places waterlogged which may lead to flooding.

Gale force winds are predicted to reach up to 100km/h which, along with heavy rain and waterlogged roads, will lead to hazardous driving conditions.

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Gardaí­ have warned motorists to exercise caution on the roads, urging drivers to make sure they have enough time to stop and to use their lights, even in daylight hours, due to reduced visibility.

Southwesterly gales, torrential rain and thunderstorms caused flooding in the west, with the river Corrib and tributaries bursting banks in several parts of Galway city and county.

Mayo and Roscommon have also been affected by the severe weather, which has been attributed to unseasonably high sea temperatures.

Gardaí braved wind and rain to perform traffic duty throughout Galway city and surrounds from early yesterday, as parts of the N17 between Galway and Loughgeorge on the Tuam road proved to be impassable.

Flooding also affected houses and reduced traffic to one lane at Two Mile Ditch near Castlegar outside Galway, while Crow Street in Gort was also underwater.

The N17 was also closed between Milltown and Ballindine on the Galway-Mayo border for most of the day, as Garda teams examined the scene of Tuesday night’s road crash which claimed the lives of four students and seriously injured a fifth student.

Galway City Council and County Council teams worked through Tuesday night to try and alleviate flooding, which affected part of the N59 route between the city and Moycullen. Walls were knocked and ditches dug on the N17 in an effort to reduce water levels, and pumping was also applied.

Galway County Council acting director of services Evan Molloy said drainage systems were not able to cope and there was “nowhere for water to go” at outfall points. “We are depending on the rain to ease,” he said.

A limited number of sandbags were available, and the local authority appealed to the public to convey relevant information to (091) 509309.

Fianna Fáil councillor Gerry Finnerty said that Gort and the south Galway area had not seen water levels so high since 1995, when there was extensive flooding. Turloughs in the limestone rich area were “backing up into each other”, he said.

Persistent rain will affect all areas today, with further flooding likely. Highest temperatures of 11 to 13 degrees are predicted with strong to gale force south to southwest winds.

The heavier rain should clear by early tonight while the rest of the night is set to be dry with winds easing. There will be some let-up tomorrow, with fewer showers forecast. However, the weekend weather is due to deteriorate again.