Midleton cleans up after flooding

Business owners in Midleton in East Cork were today counting the cost of sudden torrential rainfall last night which resulted in up to a dozen premises at the southern end of the town being flooded.

The premises, mainly at the southern end of Main Street, were flooded up to a depth of several inches as water gathered on the street and a wash was created by passing vehicles before Midleton Town Council staff and gardai were able to close off the roadway.

According to Midleton Town Clerk, Joe McCarthy the flooding stemmed from a combination of heavy rains and a high tide in the Owencurra River which resulted in river levels rising above the exit levels of drains which in turn led to water backing up on to the street.

Mr McCarthy said that there was also a problem in the southern end of town where, although most of the storm water and foul water drains have been separated, there remains a small section of combined piping which resulted in foul water waste washing back up drains.

Among the shopkeepers and business people counting the cost of the deluge which fell between 6.30pm and 9pm last night was Aisling O’Connor of A O’Connor Opticians where floodwaters flooded the ground floor to a depth of over six inches.

"We’re just devastated - we only did up the premises seven weeks ago, putting in a new reception desk and that’s all been destroyed - we’re waiting for the timbers to dry out but we’re expecting that they’re all going to warp," said Ms O’Connor.

"We also lost stock which we had in the lower drawer units - this is the third time that we’ve been flooded in the past 12 years and it’s definitely the worse - more water came in and went further back the shop than it did on either of the other two occasions," she said.

Immediately next door, Irene O’Driscoll, manager of the O2 store was similarly counting the cost of the clean-up, relieved that none of their stock was damaged but concerned about the damage to electrical sockets and power points located low on the walls.

"All the drains blocked up so you ended up not just with water but with this disgusting dirty sewage like stuff so we had to get industrial cleaners in to clean the place- you might expect heavy rain in November but you never expect it to happen in June," she said.

Killian McGrath of The Print Factory reckoned he was lucky compared to some other businesses around but he saw at first hand the terrifying impact that torrential rain and sudden flooding can have as he came across a stranded motorist on the Youghal Road.

"The poor woman was stuck in her car and it was nearly up to the bonnet - luckily I was in my jeep and I was able to assist her and get her out of there - it came down in the space of a couple of hours - I’ve never seen flooding like in Midleton."

Elsewhere in East Cork, both Carrigtwohill and Castlemartyr also reported heavy rainfall and pounding on the roads as did Youghal but business people and homeowners for the most part escaped unscathed unlike in Midleton, an informed source told The Irish Times.