AA issues weather warning to drivers
Heavy rain in many areas of the country yesterday left a lot of roads flooded, creating extremely difficult driving conditions for motorists.
AA Roadwatch said a number of motorists throughout the country had to have their vehicles rescued after becoming stuck in flood waters.
The bad weather also resulted in a number of minor accidents due to poor driving conditions and motorists not taking enough care.
A spokesman for AA Roadwatch said a heavy downpour that continued from midnight until around 6am on Sunday was responsible for much of the flooding. The east coast and the midlands were worst affected but, as expected, brighter weather extended from the south-west during the morning and early afternoon.
The clearer weather, however, was expected to be followed by scattered showers last night, some of them heavy, mainly in Atlantic coastal counties and in southern coastal areas.
Roads were badly flooded in parts of Kildare, Wicklow, Wexford, Sligo, Leitrim, Westmeath and Kilkenny.
Roads across parts of Co Dublin was also acutely affected during the morning as a result of surface water and minor flooding.
The spokesman said AA Rescue received calls from motorists whose vehicles had become stuck after trying to drive through heavy surface water.
He advised motorists to only drive through water if they knew how deep it was and at all time to drive slowly and cautiously.
Drivers should also allow oncoming traffic to pass first and should test their vehicle’s brakes as soon as possible after leaving the water.
And, with the bad weather expected to continue, AA Roadwatch are advising motorists to double the distance between their car and the car in front of them, as stopping distances are increased by wet roads.
“If steering becomes unresponsive due to the rain, ease off the accelerator and slow down gradually,” the spokesman advised.
A number of sporting events were cancelled yesterday because of the bad weather. Horse racing meetings were called off in Mallow, Co Cork, and at Leopardstown, Dublin.
Bad weather, however, did not stop the Race Against Breast Cancer Fundraising event at Leopardstown going ahead as planned.
Met Éireann has warned the very unsettled weather will continue for the rest of the week with wet and windy weather at times.
