Ireland – Shannon River Floods After Wet February

An extremely wet February has left rivers high across wide areas of Ireland, in particular along the Shannon river basin, prompting some evacuations.

Rain

Met Éireann said the provisional rainfall totals for the period 01 to 24 February are currently at 225% of Ireland’s average. For comparison, the rainfall totals for December 2015, when Ireland was hit by Storms Desmond, Eva and Frank, was around 245% of normal.

Newport, County Mayo, recorded 283.5 mm of rain during this period (01 to 24 February). While the highest daily rainfall total was 51.5 mm on Saturday 8 February at Knock Airport, County Mayo.

Flooded Areas

Media in Ireland reported some evacuations on 23 February as water from the Shannon crept closer to houses in the village of Springfield, Clonlara in County Clare. Sandbags and pumping stations were delivered to ten houses in the village.

In County Leitrim, authorities have been pumping of flood waters in Leitrim Village and Carrick-on-Shannon, while troops have been assisting in erecting flood defences in the Castleconnell area of County Limerick, on the banks of the River Shannon.

Westmeath County Council says it has activated its Flood Emergency Response Plan in response to the rising River Shannon in the Athlone Area. Flooding was reported on some low-lying roads in Athlone, where the Shannon is expected to continue to rise until Friday 29 February 2020.

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar visited some of the affected areas on 24 February, including Athlone and Carrick-on-Shannon.

Rivers

As of 26 February, rivers were above their Annual Maximum (AMAX) in several locations, including the Shannon at Derryholmes in County Offaly (34.97 metres) and at at West Offaly Power Station (35.36m).

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