Elderly couple rescued as Hurricane Bill nears

AN elderly couple had to be rescued by firefighters from their home after thunderstorms and torrential downpours left them cut off by flood waters.

The alarm was raised shortly after 11am yesterday, when the couple, both in their late 80s, awoke to find their home in Dromore, Co Clare, filled knee-high with water after a downpour overnight.

Several areas of the county were badly affected by the rainfall, which meteorologists have said is linked to a hurricane expected to hit Irish shores over the coming days.