Stone and concrete thrown up by wild sea

Families in Co Clare were evacuated from their seaside homes as windows and patio doors were blown in by 30m high waves which threw quarter-ton wall cappings 50m across a car park.

Residents of several apartments and homes in Lahinch had to be taken to safety by fire personnel and gardaí after the worst storms ever witnessed in the west Clare resort town.

Dozens of mobile homes and caravans were left under several feet of water after the Atlantic surged several hundred metres inland.