Floods even wash Christmas cheer away

CORK city woke up to a flood of problems yesterday after a night of torrential rain.

In Blackpool, the Christmas dreams of one family were washed away by the floods.

Yesterday, as she surveyed the damage to her new home, a young mother broke down in desperation.

She told of how many of her possessions, including her children's Christmas presents, had been destroyed by the flooding in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Lisa McNamara, 29, was woken yesterday by a loud bang the television and video which she'd left plugged in had exploded as water filled her living room at Great William O'Brien Street in Blackpool, Cork.

"I'd only moved into the house a couple of weeks ago. I'd put everything into it. The washing machine, the cooker and settee are destroyed," Ms McNamara said.

In Hally's Bar in Blackpool owner, Paul O'Halloran, was putting a brave face on the events. He'd already spent 40,000 refurbishing the pub work which was now all destroyed.

"I woke up when the alarm went off in my car at 4.20am. I had to prise open the house door to get out to it, the pressure of water was so great. Stools and bottles were floating around in the bar," Mr O'Halloran said.

Five cars belonging to his family which were parked outside were also half submerged in the flood waters which in places reached depths of four feet.

At the nearby Boulevarde pub, owner Ozzie Payton was also cleaning up.

"The kitchen is destroyed, the hall is destroyed and there's loads of damage to the bar and lounge. The place was covered with muck. I estimate the damage to be up to 50,000," Mr Peyton said.

Monica Horgan who owns a fancy dress shop in nearby Thomas Davis Street was also counting the cost.

"All my Christmas stock arrived just hours before the flood," Ms Horgan said as she swept the debris out the shop door.

"When I got here there was stuff floating around the place," she said.

Residents in Togher's Greenwood Estate, on the southside of the city, were sweeping rivers of mud out of their driveways.

Marie O'Keeffe ran out of her home in her nightdress at 1.30am yesterday after getting a call from a neighbour. She was able to save her car but as the water rose it burst into her house.

"It was two feet high in places. It came in first through the air vents. It went into the conservatory, the kitchen and the utility room," she said.

As water continued to rise in the estate some people knocked part of a nine-foot high wall to relieve the pressure.

Meanwhile, insurance companies are bracing themselves for multi-million euro claims following the deluge which left scores of homes and businesses flooded in Cork.

The suburbs of Blackpool and Togher bore the brunt of the one and three quarter inches of rain which fell between 6pm on Wednesday and 6am yesterday. In one hour, between midnight and 1am, almost one inch of rain bucketed down on the city.

Fire brigade officers had to save a taxi driver and two passengers when the car they were travelling in was washed along in a torrent of water which gushed into parts of Blackpool.

"They had a very lucky escape," fire brigade officer Adrian Spillet said.

He said the fire brigade received more than 100 calls from worried people, especially in the Blackpool area when the River Bride broke its banks.

More than €150,000 of damage was done to Blackpool Credit Union.

"All our computers have been destroyed. They were a completely customised system to the credit union," manager Stephen Geary said.

"We will be closed at least until next Monday," he added.

Nearby homes, shops and bars were also badly damaged and more than a dozen cars were submerged in flood waters which in places measured four feet.

A City Council spokesman said there were plans to introduce flood relief works in the Blackpool area next year.

Residents in Togher's Greenwood Estate were yesterday sweeping a sea of mud from their houses and driveways after a nearby stream broke its banks sending three feet of water cascading into the area.

Togher Boys and Girls National Schools were closed due to flood damage and won't reopen until Monday. More than €200,000 had been recently spent on refurbishing both schools.

A few householders found sanctuary in the nearby Doughcloyne Hotel where management put them up free of charge.

"Six people from the worst affected area came over and we put them in bedrooms. The road outside was just a river of rapids," hotel manager Brian McCarthy said.