Cork City remains on flood alert after River Lee breaks its banks

Parts of Cork City flooded last night as Met Éireann issued weather warnings for several parts of the country.

Amid high tides and heavy rain, the River Lee broke its banks in Cork City. The affected areas included the South Mall, South Terrace, sections of Oliver Plunkett St, Pembroke St, Rutland St, Kyrls Quay, Morrison’s Island, Father Mathew St, Union Quay, and Sharman Crawford St.

A number of parked cars on Father Matthew St were left flooded, with gardaí placing a number of road and street diversions at various points across the city.

Carrigaline village and parts of Midleton also suffered flooding.

The flooding largely receded in the city following the passing of the high tide at 6.12pm, but business owners took to Twitter and social media to express their concerns about further flooding in the coming days.

Cork City Council has issued a flood warning for the next three days. It said there will be high tides at 6.40am today, 7pm this evening, at 7:27am and 7.47pm tomorrow , and at 8:15am on Sunday .

“A tidal surge and strong south to south easterly winds are predicted over the next number of days,” the council said.

“These factors combined will increase the tide levels over the natural tide levels. During this period, prior to and after these tides, there is a danger of tidal flooding in the city.”

Meanwhile, a surfer had a miraculous escape in Co Clare last night after he was smashed against rocks in storm force winds, leaving him injured and hypothermic.

A search had been launched earlier after a member of the public reported seeing a “black object” in the sea a few hundred metres south of the main beach at Lahinch in Co Clare.

Members of the Doolin unit of the Irish Coast Guard began a coastline search.

The search was called off at around 5.40pm and the incident was treated as a “false alarm with good intent” until another emergency call was received just minutes later.

Soon afterwards, a dazed and injured man was found stumbling up steps close to the prom at Lahinch.

The man, who works in a pub in Liscannor, was taken into care by Coast Guard personnel until emergency medical services arrived.

As well as Cork, Met Éireann issued a status orange wind warning for Connacht, Donegal, Clare, Kerry, and Limerick up to 2pm this afternoon.

Met Éireann said the gusts of up to 130kph, combined with heavy rain, high tides, and high seas, could lead to flooding, especially in coastal areas. There was a similar warning for Leinster, Cavan, Monaghan, Tipperary, and Waterford, albeit with slightly less powerful gusts of 110kph.

The warnings came as Met Éireann revealed Cork Airport recorded its wettest December since 1989, while stations in the West recorded their highest rainfall totals for 14 years. The forecaster also said stations in the South and West had their highest mean wind speeds for December since 2007.

Ttonight, the blustery conditions are expected to ease somewhat, although temperatures will dip as low as -1C and there will be sleet on high ground.

Aquadome suffers damage

By Donal Hickey

A water leisure facility in Co Kerry may be closed for up to three weeks due to storm damage.

Several slates were blown from the roof of the Aquadome in Tralee, and the dome at the highest point of the building was also damaged. A glass cone at the apex of the dome smashed after falling to the ground.

The swimming pool was exposed to the weather as a result.

Aquadome chairman Denis Reen yesterday said that a crane would be needed to enable essential repairs to be carried out on the roof.

“With more stormy weather due, it could be some days before we can get around to this and, at a best estimate, it could be two to three weeks before we open again,’’ said Mr Reen.

The financially pressed Aquadome has suffered losses over what would normally be a busy festice period. Ironically, fine weather last summer also led to a drop in visitor numbers, as people opted for beaches, creating further financial pressures for the indoor facility.