Gardaí at scene of two car collision in Charleville; Cork motorists urged to remain cautious if travelling
A snow covered Broad Street in Charleville, Co Cork. Picture: Dan Linehan
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Gardaí are at the scene of a two vehicle road traffic incident that occurred in Charleville this morning.
A garda spokesperson said that the collision occurred this morning, and that a truck had jack-knifed on the N20 north of Charleville.
"Two people were treated for their injuries at the scene," said the spokesperson.
The road remained closed for a period and has now reopened.
"As this is an ongoing incident, no further information is available at this time," said the spokesperson.
Meanwhile, in an update this afternoon, Cork County Council said that majority of primary routes have been treated and are passable with caution however the local authority is still urging the public not to travel unless it is absolutely necessary.
"Further wintry showers, rainfall and freezing conditions may limit the effectiveness of salting already undertaken as rainfall can wash salt off the road and, combined with low road surface temperatures, allow ice to form.
"Many priority 3 and other routes remain in very poor condition across north, north-west and mid Cork, and are impassable in places.
"Cork County Council’s main focus continues to be the priority 1 and 2 routes as well as town and villages," the council said.
A full list of treatment routes is available here.
Meanwhile, the HSE has reminded the public that all non-urgent appointments in Cork, such as outpatient appointments and other clinical appointments, are cancelled for today.
The majority of non-urgent appointments scheduled for Tuesday will go ahead as planned, but the HSE are asking the public to travel only if safe to do so.
"All non-urgent appointments at CUH, South Infirmary Victoria Hospital, Mercy University Hospital, Bantry Hospital and Mallow Hospital will not go ahead today but most will take place tomorrow, as scheduled," said a HSE spokesperson.
At Cork University Maternity Hospital, all gynaecology outpatient appointments are not going ahead today but will recommence tomorrow. Antenatal appointments are going ahead, which means that any expectant mother with an appointment should attend. Please contact the CUMH directly if you have any questions.
"Staff are providing care urgent and emergency care and this will continue. HSE staff are contacting patients with urgent appointments such as dialysis and chemotherapy to make arrangements," said the spokesperson.
The impact on services today also includes:
Appointments in community services including physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, audiology, community psychology, podiatry, dietetics, child development clinics and eye care clinics are deferred.
They will go ahead tomorrow except in North Cork. Anyone with a deferred appointment tomorrow will be contacted directly.
Dental services are also be closed today but open in most of Cork tomorrow, Tuesday.
Day services for older people will not take place today.
School vaccination clinics will not go ahead today.
All mental health day services, day hospitals and outpatient services have been cancelled today.
said the HSE spokesperson.
Appointments at ICPOP (Integrated Care Programme for Older Persons) and Integrated Care Programme Chronic Diseases will not go ahead.
For anyone with an appointment today which has been deferred, HSE staff will be in touch as soon as possible to reschedule your appointment. Where it is possible and appropriate, staff may offer you a virtual appointment. Anyone in doubt should contact the office or person who issued the appointment.
Cork County Council has provided a further up date on conditions currently experienced in areas across the county.
"It’s currently snowing in north-west Cork in the Newmarket area. The majority of primary roads have been treated and are passable with caution. However, Cork County Council is still urging the public not to travel unless it’s absolutely necessary," said a spokesperson.
They said the majority 'priority three' and other routes remain in very poor condition and are impassable in places.
"The focus in north, north-west and mid Cork are the priority 1 and 2 routes as well as towns and villages.
Roads updates:
• R578 Newmarket to Freemount is treated but road conditions remain poor.
• R578 Bog Cross to Dromina remains very poor.
• R515 Newtownshandrum Village remains very poor.
• L1320 - N20 to Churchtown is very poor. Caution is to be exercised in vicinity of railway crossing as road conditions are very slippery.
• R619 to Bweeng is not treated and road conditions are very poor.
• R579 Banteer to Nadd remains closed due to a combination of fallen trees and snow accumulations.
The N20 from Mallow to Charleville is treated and traffic is moving. However, there is a lot of snow on the sides and middle of the N20 road between Buttevant and Charleville.
A full list of treatment routes is available by following the link at https://www.corkcoco.ie/en.
Cork County Council's Crisis Management Team met this morning to assess road and weather conditions overnight and provided the following updates:
Although the majority of priority routes were treated overnight and early this morning, road conditions remain dangerous due to snow and ice.
• Please avoid the N20 Charleville to facilitate ploughing and gritting operations.
• A snow plough is working on the Newmarket to Rockchapel Road with only a single lane cleared in places due to snow accumulations.
• The Banteer to Nadd Road remains closed due to fallen trees.
• The regional Newtown to Bog Cross road in Dromina is impassable because of compacted snow.
• Conditions are very poor on the R582 Macroom to Millstreet and R619 Coachford to Donoghmore roads, Council ploughs and salters are on site.
• There are also reports of ice on N71 at the Viaduct with salting ongoing.
❄️🚶 Pedestrians are advised to take extra care this morning. Where snow has fallen, or where there is a risk of lingering ice, do not venture out unless it is absolutely necessary.
— Cork County Council (@Corkcoco) January 6, 2025
🚲 Be aware of the fact that greenways, cycleways and other public amenities will likely not… pic.twitter.com/bFaNnEmKx0
Meanwhile, the Mallow and Fermoy Swimming Pools will be closed all day today. Dunmanway Swimming Pool is closed this morning and will be reviewed before lunchtime.
The Council’s Mobile Library service has been suspended for the day and will therefore not be operating.
All Cork County Council civic amenity sites are closed this morning. The situation is being reviewed with updates being publicised on the council’s website.
Council offices in Annabella Mallow will be closed to the public until further notice due to icy conditions.
The phone lines for the building remain in operation.
Cork County Council will continue to provide updates on www.corkcoco.ie and across the council’s social media channels @Corkcoco throughot the coming days.
An Post this morning issued an update on the impact of the current weather conditions on its letter and parcel deliveries, as well as regarding Post Office Services.
In Cork, An Post will be unable to make letter or parcel deliveries on the majority of routes in the county.
Post Offices in the county have also been impacted. While some may be able to open later when power and access are restored, many Post Offices will remain closed today, Monday January 6.
Motorists are facing difficult driving conditions in parts of Cork city and county this morning, as temperatures dipped overnight following heavy snowfall in many areas yesterday.
Drivers are advised to take extra care on the roads, with reports of icy conditions on several roads across the city and county, including on the R602 between Bandon and Timoleague and sections of the N28 at Carr’s Hill.
There are also reports of icy conditions in Midleton, notably at the roundabout near SuperValu, with reports of black ice on the N71 road between Cork and Innishannon near the Viaduct.
Icy conditions have also been reported across most roads in the city.
The severe winter weather has led to the closure of some schools and some public transport restrictions as well as the cancellation of several healthcare services.
Cork County Council has said road conditions remain “hazardous” in parts of north-east and mid-Cork, with the authority advising people to avoid making any unnecessary journeys.
In a post on social media Cork City Council said: "Road conditions will be hazardous, even where roads are gritted, slow down, drive with caution as black ice may be present.
"Take extra care while walking as footpaths can be extremely hazardous/slippery due to ice.
"Our Severe Weather Assessment Team continues to monitor the situation."
Met Éireann has reiterated that the status yellow countrywide warning for low temperatures and ice will remain in place until noon on Thursday.
“Potential impacts include hazardous travelling conditions, icy patches and travel disruption,” said the national forecaster.
Met Éireann said the weather will be “bitterly cold” today with frost and lying snow.
There will be a mix sunshine and scattered showers of rain, hail sleet and snow across the day.
“Top temps ranging from 1 to 5 degrees but staying below freezing over snow-fields. NW winds will increase moderate to gusty, stronger in Atlantic areas.”
Meanwhile, Uisce Éireann has said it is working to restore water supplies to approximately 40,000 people in Cork, Limerick, Kerry and Tipperary. The utility company warned supplies to a further 30,000 people are at risk due to low reservoir levels.
The ESB said 41,000 homes and businesses remained without power on Monday morning, and warned it may take days to restore supply to all customers.
"Our crews alongside ESB and local authority teams are working in difficult freezing conditions to return water supplies to those affected by bursts on the network and electricity outages," said an Uisce Éireann spokesperson.
"We are urging households, businesses and farmers to protect outside taps and to insulate exposed pipes and tanks which are particularly vulnerable to freezing.
"We are asking people to check for leaks and to turn off water to exterior pipes or unoccupied premises. Alternatively, people may consider setting the heating for these areas to come on periodically at a lower temperature. This allows warm air to circulate and will help to prevent pipes and tanks from freezing in the cold weather," said the spokesperson.
The Health Service Executive has cancelled clinical and non-urgent outpatient appointments in the worst-affected areas, along with breast screening services in the south-west.
The poor weather conditions also resulted in school closure announcements, particularly across Counties Carlow and Kilkenny as well as Limerick, Kerry, Tipperary and Cork.
Meanwhile, Bus Eireann informed customers that a range of routes in the south of the country have been halted.
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