IMPACT:HEAVY RAINS are expected today and tomorrow with a risk of strong winds. However, the rainfall will not have the intensity of the deluges that have flooded parts of the south, west and midlands, Met Éireann said last night.
“The real problem is the rain that’s already fallen,” according to forecaster Joan Blackburn.
While the flooding has been the worst in a decade, the levels of rainfall are not the worst to date, Met Éireann stressed.
The Valentia Observatory recorded 57.4mm of rain in a 24-hour period this week, but the highest ever daily rainfall of 86.6mm was recorded on November 1st, 1980, said Ms Blackburn.
With 10 days still to go in November, the observatory has recorded 263mm so far and the highest ever monthly rainfall there was 312mm in November 1931. More recent figures show 291mm in 2003 and 290mm in 2002.
Cork airport this week has recorded a 51mm rainfall in 24 hours, which is high, but the daily record was 59.3mm in November 1981, according to the forecaster.
Rainfall of between 10 and 20mm were predicted for last night with a particularly heavy band of rain stretching from the southwest across the country.
The rains are expected to clear across the country during the day today with sunshine in parts in the early afternoon.
Through tonight and tomorrow, however, there will be a lot of heavy showers and strong winds.
The Defence Forces and Red Cross volunteers have been assisting local authorities in dealing with the flood waters and are on standby for the weekend.
Up to 200 soldiers were deployed with off-road trucks and flat-bottomed boats to help bring medical staff to and from hospitals and rescue flood-stranded families from their homes.
The Red Cross, a HSE auxiliary, was first requested on Thursday morning to go on standby in west Cork and Clonakilty.
“We had nine 4x4 ambulances and 12 regular ambulances on standby,” said southern regional director Ted Noonan. They were deployed to bring medical staff stranded in their homes because of impassable roads, to and from Cork University Hospital.
The Red Cross has also been distributing blankets to flood victims evacuated to St Finbarr’s hurling club in Cork.
Schools in several parts of the west and south closed, while a number of hospitals were forced to curtail services.
In Cork, Mercy University Hospital clinical director Dr Colm Henry praised staff who braved flood waters to get to work and said patient safety was the hospital’s priority. The emergency department, which was flooded, would remain closed until at least tomorrow, he added.
Homes across the State were also without phone and broadband services last night as engineers struggled with flood damage.
Eircom said 5,300 of its customers were still without service at 5.30pm but repairs had been made in numerous areas. Close to 25,000 customers were without service early yesterday.