Cork homeowners and businesses brace for 'unthinkable' ahead of orange weather warning

Homeowners and business owners in Cork are battening down the hatches and bracing for the “unthinkable” ahead of the status orange weather warning which has been forecast for Wednesday.

The status orange warning forecast by Met Éireann will be in place from 12pm on Wednesday to 12pm on Thursday.

Persistent rain, heavy at times, accompanied by strong onshore winds, high tides, and elevated river levels are forecast, leaving residents of Gleann Fia estate in Mogeely near Midleton on high alert.

Resident Vivienne Jeffers, who recently told The Echo of how she had to escape her flooding home with her two young kids through the top window in their sitting room during Storm Babet back in October, said residents fear the worst yet again.

The estate was badly flooded last October with 30 of 32 homes affected, the aftermath of which Ms Jeffers described as “complete demolition”. 

The estate narrowly escaped flooding on two separate occasions since then.

Ms Jeffers, who previously called for interim flood defense measures to be put in place, said: 

Residents are on high alert in Gleann Fia with the announcement of the orange rain warning, especially with the fact that our estate has been threatened twice with flooding since October without any weather events, just simple rainfall coming off the land.

“No one will sleep for the rest of the week. Many will have emergency bags packed just in case the unthinkable happens again.” 

Cork County Council advised property owners to take precautions in low-lying areas or areas susceptible to flooding and road users are asked to exercise caution as driving conditions may be hazardous.

Motorists are advised to avoid driving through flowing or standing water and to exercise caution during heavy rain and are also asked to be conscious of cyclists and pedestrians.

The Council’s Severe Weather Assessment Team convened on Tuesday afternoon and has crews on standby in several known risk locations across the county.

Crews have been clearing inlets and gullies and pumping arrangements have been put in place as a precautionary measure in known problem locations.

Meanwhile, Cork city centre also braces for the strong winds, rainfall and expected flooding as businesses remain fearful of damage to their premises.

Speaking to The Echo ahead of the status orange weather warning, president of the Cork Business Association (CBA) Kevin Herlihy said it is “very worrying” for businesses.

“These astronomical tides are a huge concern. There are very few businesses in the city centre that have flood insurance now so it’s obviously a big concern.

We just hope that it will pass without incident. That’s the hope among the business community. We’ve just got to batten down the hatches and Cork City Council is providing sandbags.

“The big thing too is that work on the flood defence scheme on Morrison’s Island is going to start soon. 

"The sooner it starts and the sooner it gets done then the better for Cork city. When it is done it will be great but for the moment, we’ve just got to take all the precautions.” 

In the event of a disruption to power supply, people are asked to contact ESB Networks at 1800 372 999 and in the event of a disruption to water supply, people are asked to contact Uisce Éireann at 1800 278 278.

In an emergency, people are asked to call 999 or 112 and request the Fire Service, Ambulance Service, Gardaí or Irish Coastguard as appropriate.