ONE OF the country's oldest women is unable to leave her Donegal home because of flood damage caused to the road leading to her bungalow at Annagry, Co Donegal.
Bridget McGee (102) cannot venture outside because much of the road has been washed away by flood waters following torrential rain early yesterday.
Ms McGee awoke to find several inches of water in her kitchen and thought she had left a tap on. It was only when her home-help assistant arrived she realised the road had been washed away and water had come into her home.
"It was very frightening for me. I thought I left the tap on in the kitchen but then I realised the water came in from outside under the door. The water was very dirty and made a terrible mess in the kitchen," she said.
A step prevented the water from getting across the hall to the sittingroom and bedrooms. The fast-flowing water washed away most of the road leading to her home and she is awaiting a decision by Donegal County Council on having it repaired.
It appears a drain on the main road above Ms McGee's house was unable to take the flow of water, a problem that was not there before recent works to the drainage system, according to locals.
"The road is in an awful state and is bad enough for younger people let alone my mother, who is nearing her 103rd birthday. It's impassable and we couldn't even get an ambulance or fire brigade in if it was needed," her son, Michael McGee, said.
A council spokesman confirmed it had been made aware of the situation but could not say when repairs would be carried out.