ESB crews restore power in clean-up after storm

ESB repair crews yesterday restored power to thousands of customers in the north-west as the clean-up continued following Tuesday's storm.

An ESB spokesman said that by yesterday afternoon power had been restored to all but 1,500 of 7,000 affected homes.

Remaining repairs were due to have been completed last night.

Winds in excess of 90 m.p.h. were recorded by Met Éireann on Tuesday evening as the 24-hour storm reached its peak.

Co Donegal bore the brunt of the damage in the Republic, and most of the blackouts were concentrated around Killybegs and Inishowen.

In the North, the storm claimed the life of a lorry driver whose truck was blown off the Foyle Bridge in Derry.

Met Éireann forecaster Ms Evelyn Cusack said the winds died down early yesterday morning, although there were some lingering hail showers in the north and west.

"It looks like being wet and windy tomorrow," she added. "But the winds will be a more normal 30-40 m.p.h.

"The overall pattern is more of the same unsettled weather, which is typical for this time of year. But there is no sign of any more storms over the next 10 days, which is the limit of our medium-range forecast."

The ESB spokesman said its recent investment of €3 billion-plus in upgrading the national grid had helped to minimise the impact of the storm.

"A storm in 1998 in the same area affected in excess of 100,000 homes," he added.

In addition, many more homes in the UK lost power compared to the Republic as a result of Tuesday's storm - with 26,000 households affected in Northern Ireland, and more than 60,000 affected in Scotland.

Air and ferry services returned to near-normal yesterday.

Just one Aer Arann flight - out of Sligo - was cancelled, while another - out of Donegal - was delayed.