VIDEO: Storm Frank brings flood of misery as Taoiseach under fire for 'lack of leadership'

Flood-hit areas are facing more misery with further heavy rain due at least into the middle of next week, followed by another round of rising river levels and many more weeks of cleaning up ahead.

Latest forecasts show the extremely wet and windy weather returning tomorrow night and continuing through the weekend but Met Éireann said there was no sign of that pattern changing before the middle of next week and probably beyond.

The warning comes as large areas of Munster, south Leinster, the Midlands, and West continued to struggle with waterlogged homes and businesses, impassable roads, swamped farms, and blocked drains and sewerage systems, in some cases for the fourth successive week.

Alerts were highest last night in Cork City, West Cork, Athlone, Limerick, and Enniscorthy, where river levels in some places were just below or already above the peak experienced after Storm Desmond.

Plans by the ESB to increase the volumes of water being released from the Inniscarra Dam outside Cork City and Parteen Weir on the Shannon were expected to exacerbate the situation.

The crisis will top the agenda when the Cabinet meets next week for the first time since the Christmas break, and all State agencies involved in the use or management of the Shannon are being summoned for talks on the problem.

Local councils have already drawn down €5.7m of a special €8m fund set up to help with clean up costs and Environment Minister Alan Kelly said he would ask Cabinet for more money if it was needed.

Mr Kelly refused to put an estimate on the likely total cost of the clean-up operation, which, it is is feared, could run to multiples of the initial fund once waters subside and the extent of the task is clearer.

“This isn’t an issue that is going to be closed off today or tomorrow,” said Mr Kelly.

“This is an issue that we are going to be dealing with as a government for the next three or four weeks at the very minimum. “We’re not out of the woods and we won’t be out of the woods next week and really it will be the end of January before we’ll be able to make initial assessments.”

Mr Kelly was speaking before he and Simon Harris, the minister in charge of the Office of Public Works, set off for Athlone to see first-hand the damage caused by the weeks of repeat flooding and the battle locals have been waging to try to keep the waters at bay.

The pair were forced to defend Taoiseach Enda Kenny against criticisms that he has shown a lack of leadership throughout the crisis by failing to visit areas devastated by the winter storms.

Mr Harris said it was the Taoiseach’s initiave to call all the agencies involved in the Shannon together, to set up an interdepartmental group on flooding which is due to report in the spring, and to approve €430m in spending on major flood prevention works over the next five years.

“The Taoiseach isn’t just putting on the wellies and doing a Bertie Ahern, standing in a puddle of water saying: ‘Look at me taking action.’ The Taoiseach is taking action,” said Mr Harris.

Mr Kelly also sprang to Mr Kenny’s defence, saying he had been on a long conference call with him that morning and the issue was “the top priority” for Government.

However, his party colleague, Rural Affairs Minister Ann Phelan, struck a different note on RTÉ radio, saying: “I’m not quite sure what the Taoiseach’s schedule is like at the moment. All I know is I’m out with my people.”

She said areas around the River Barrow in her Carlow-Kilkenny constituency look like they have been hit by a “tsunami” and “the street just looks like a war zone”, adding: “Something has to be done, because we simply can’t go through this again.”

Her comments were echoed by Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin and party colleague Colm Keaveney, who claimed “there is no sense of urgency from Government in responding to the needs of flooded communities” and called for the Dáil to be recalled immediately to address the crisis.

“Where is the Taoiseach and why has he failed to co-ordinate a countrywide response?” Mr Martin asked.

Anger at the Government was evident in many local communities. Businesswoman Gillian Powell, who is leading a campaign for flood relief in Bandon in West Cork, said people were as weary of official promises as they were of the flooding.

“It’s about time we had one agency in charge of the country’s flood problems. It’s a national emergency, year on year, and no government seems to care,” she said.

New year’s celebrations may have to be put on hold because of the renewed weather alerts, with gardaí and the coastguard advising against unnecessary journeys and urging “sensible decisions” around sea swims and hill walking.

Gerald Fleming of Met Éireann warned: “There’s no real sign of an end to this spell of very windy, very unsettled and very, very wet weather that seems to last well into the middle of next week and beyond.”

Huge waves as well as Storm Frank will approach Ireland/UK !
max 14 meter is possible SW coast Ireland /south ! pic.twitter.com/xbkd7q7Sqg

— MetRyanJ/Europe (@WinterExpert) December 27, 2015