Galway picks up the pieces as floods subside at last

As the flood waters begin to slowly recede across South Galway, the attention has now turned to a major clean-up and repair of up to 200 roads wrecked by weather crisis.

The misery is not over for seven families in the Meelick, Eyrecourt and Clonfert areas who are still manning pumps in bid to keep the water at bay while 15 families in the hinterland of Gort have been unable to return home after their forced evacuations.

At least 40 more homes are marooned by floods, with 30 local roads east and west of the N18 still impassable six weeks after Storm Desmond unleashed its fury. But the Shannon, Suck, Dunkellin and Clare Rivers are no longer rising, which will give some relief to beleaguered homeowners living under intolerably stressful conditions.

And still South Galway has some way yet before life returns to normal, reflected Galway County Council’s director of roads and transportation, Liam Gavin.

“South Galway still has an awful lot of water trying to get to the sea. Labane is still closed – the water is receding slowly but it will take another week or two before we can get one lane open,” he explained.

“Lough Rea and Lough Derg had dropped to 4cm last night so the threat is certainly abating but it will take a lot more time for the water to go down – at least three to four weeks in some areas, if we get decent weather from now on.”

Seven families are being put up in hotels in Gort by Galway County Council while others are staying with family and friends.

Council workers have begun the clean-up in those parts of the county where the water had dropped, clearing culverts and doing minor repairs to the worst affected roads.

See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune.