Letterkenny hospital emergency department re-opens after flood

The Emergency Department of Letterkenny General Hospital has now re-opened to walk-in patients after being closed for three weeks.

40% of the hospital was damaged in severe flooding in July, which forced the closure of several departments.

The emergency department opened on a phased basis on Saturday to accept ambulances, and it's now open to self-referrals in emergency cases.

General Manager of Letterkenny Hospital Sean Murphy said that while it was a huge achievement that the hospital re-opened so quickly, every care was taken to ensure patient safety

"Throughout, one of key focuses was to ensure that everything we did we did on a phases basis to ensure patients' safety.

"That's why when we reopened on Saturday, we opened … to a limited number of critical ambulance cases initially. Now we're able to accommodate patients who self-present."

People are advised to only present at the new interim Emergency Department if they require urgent treatment.