Updated Statement from Cork County Council on Flooding
Cork County Council’s Severe Weather Assessment Team convened this morning to assess the impact of the unprecedented flooding across the county. The Council are continuously evaluating the impact of the storm and response. Our primary focus remains on ensuring public safety, and continuing clean-up operations in the affected areas.
Council officials are working closely with emergency services and local communities to address immediate concerns, including flooding, road closures, and infrastructure damage. Efforts are concentrated on restoring essential services, securing affected areas, and supporting residents and businesses who have been impacted by the severe weather.
The response was a multi-agency response with approximately 150 members of Cork County Council Roads Operations, Housing Operations, Municipal District Operations, Fire Service, An Garda Siochana, The Defence Forces, Civil Defence, HSE and Coast Guard all working collaboratively on site in Midleton from the coordination centre in Midleton Fire Station. We were also assisted by numerous other NGOs such as the Irish Red Cross and multiple volunteers.
The Council has responded to 57 calls for assistance between 5pm yesterday and 9am this morning through our customer support centre. Cork County Council is offering free disposal of flood damaged goods at all our Civic Amenity Sites until Thursday 26th October. Raffeen Civic Amenity Site is currently closed due to flooding, our site in Youghal has re-opened to the public. Skips will be made available in the worst affected areas.
Members of the public are asked to continue to avoid Main Street, Midleton to allow for clean-up operations. Midleton library remains closed until further notice.
Numerous parts of the county’s road network have been severely affected with many roads remaining closed to traffic. The N25 at Castlemartyr is still impassable to traffic with diversion routes via Tallow, Conna, Rathcormac, Dunkettle. Additional updates on affected roads are available on Cork County Alerts.
Met Éireann has issued a Status Yellow Rain Warning for Cork valid 11:00 pm, Thursday the 19th to 9:00 am, Friday the 20th of October. Heavy bursts of rain or showers overnight and Friday morning coupled with waterlogged soils and high river levels may lead to further localised flooding and dangerous travelling conditions.
Considering the volume of rainfall together with ongoing forecasted conditions, saturated land, high river and stream levels, Cork County Council continues to ask all road users to exercise extreme caution. The full extent of the damage is impossible to assess at this time. Please avoid driving through flowing or standing water, exercise extreme caution and be especially conscious of vulnerable road users such as cyclists and pedestrians. Council crews and contractors continue to be active in the aftermath of this event and are busy assisting road users, homes and businesses and are operating in challenging conditions.
Cork County Council will continue to inspect and undertake emergency repair works on the roads most severely impacted across the region, while also commencing the considerable clean-up programme that lies ahead. Again, motorists are asked to be aware of the impact on the road network with damage expected as a result of standing water.
With high river levels, members of the public are advised to stay high, stay dry and away from the coast, rivers and lakes.
Issues such as flooding and road damage should be reported to your local Council Office during working hours (9am to 5pm), details of which can be found in the list below:
Outside working hours (5pm to 9am), the Council can be contacted via its 'Emergency Out of Hours' number (021) 4800048.
Forecasted conditions may give rise to localised power outages. In the event of disruption to power supply, please contact ESB Networks at 1800 372 999.
In the event of disruption to water supply, please contact Uisce Éireann at 1800 278 278.
Call 999 or 112 and request the Fire Service, Ambulance Service, Gardaí or Irish Coastguard as appropriate.
Cork County Council will continue to monitor this situation.
Image Courtesy of the Irish Coast Guard