Flood-hit residents heckle Taoiseach

The Taoiseach Brian Cowen has been heckled by a small group of residents in Athlone on a tour of flood-hit areas in the Midlands.

The Taoiseach has heard angry residents in Athlone who say he hasn't seen the real extent of the devastation to their homes from flooding.

Brian Cowen has toured locations along the Shannon in the midlands to see the exent of rising waters - in Athlone alone 95 homes have been evacuated.

Some residents off Parnell Square criticised the Taoiseach for not going into the deep waters to see wrecked homes.

A special relief shop has been established in the town centre.

Mr Cowen has again acknowledged that the flooding crisis is far from over, and may get worse.

Locations along the River Shannon remain on high flood alert, while the ESB said it will release more water at Parteen Weir today, which will impact on areas around the lower River Shannon.

The Minister for the Environment John Gormley has said the €10m in humanitarian aid for flood victims should be considered "an intial downpayment".

Mr Gormley was speaking as he examined the work in progress to prevent the River Shannon from flooding housing estates in the mid-West.

The Minister, who's been viewing the damage from the air, said it is miraculous that more people's homes have not been flooded and that no one has died.

He also hinted that more money may be made available to help those worst affected.