Met Éireann to be asked why no Kerry warning was issued before Killarney flash floods
Flash floods developed rapidly in Killarney on August 27 2026. Picture: Kerry County Council - Comhairle Contae Chiarraí/X
Met Éireann is to be asked to explain why it didn’t provide any weather warnings for Kerry ahead of “biblical” flash floods that tore through Killarney.
A red weather warning event happens when at least 50mm of rain falls over a six-hour period, but it is understood that Killarney was hit with 57mm in just four hours.
Mayor of Killarney John O’Donoghue said the town somehow “dodged a bullet” because everyone “rallied around” to deal with the aftermath of the flash floods.
He also praised Kerry County Council staff for taking quick measures to ease the impact on businesses and property owners.
“What happened was biblical and unprecedented," he said.
“I would hope, as a result of this, Met Eireann will look at their forecasting and prediction models and see how they can be improved.”
Killarney Municipal District councillor Maura Healy-Rae said: “Met Eireann needs to explain why they didn’t have any idea what was going to happen in Killarney.
“We also need to know how to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
The flooding was so bad that whole sections of the town were submerged in water for a brief period.
The worst hit were properties on Park Rd, College Stt, Countess Rd, and Bypass Rd.
A number of homes and businesses were damaged over the four-hour deluge.
Pat O’Connor, who owns Variety Sounds on College St, said: “Met Eireann has a lot to answer for.
“I don’t have too much mass in them anymore.
“I would much prefer a false alarm than no alarm.”
His instrument shop suffered carpet damage, but because a member of staff was still in the shop at the time of the floods, they were able to stem the flow of water.
Shahzad Rashid and his colleagues across the road were not so lucky at the Bombay Palace restaurant.
“I am still shocked at what happened,” he said.
“Some customers were standing at the door waiting for the rain to stop when all of a sudden a river of about one-foot-high water shot into the restaurant.
“Customers and staff were soaked.
“After we said goodbye to our customers, who were all given drinks on the house, we had to rip up the carpets and get expert cleaners in to sort out the damage.”
He said they worked overnight and industrial dehumidifiers were still in operation 30 minutes before the restaurant opened its doors at 5pm on Friday.
Meanwhile, Lisa Wiltsey, co-owner of Lily Designs jewellery shop, said her premises sustained very little damage, but the force of the rain pouring onto the roof managed to smash through ceiling tiles in a back storage room.
"It was chaos," she said.
While Met Éireann issued various Status Orange rain warnings for counties Carlow, Cork, Dublin, Kildare, Kilkenny, Wexford, Wicklow, and Waterford, none was issued for Kerry.
A spokesperson for Kerry County Council told the : “Kerry County Council was not in receipt of any warnings from Met Éireann on Thursday, nor was County Kerry the subject of any weather warning from Met Éireann.”
Kerry County Council director of services Paul Neary told RTÉ that an estimated 57mm of rain fell in a four-hour period, with around 30mm falling in just one hour alone.
He said that drainage systems had, as a result, been “overwhelmed”.
Met Eireann, when asked why it hadn’t issued any warnings for Kerry, said: “Rain affected many parts of the country on Thursday.
“Met Éireann issued yellow level rainfall warnings for counties in the south and southeast on Wednesday.
“As additional model guidance arrived, it indicated the risk of heavy rain was likely to shift northwards.
“Met Éireann then issued yellow level rainfall warnings for Dublin and Kildare at 20:47 on Thursday evening.
“As the rainfall was being monitored, the risk of heavier rainfall in the Dublin area became even more likely, and the yellow warning was elevated to orange for Dublin overnight.
“The rain had pockets of highly localised intense downpours which resulted in some surface flooding in parts of Munster and Leinster.”
Check out the Irish Examiner's WEATHER CENTRE for regularly updated short and long range forecasts wherever you are.
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