Residents of Newmarket Square in Blackpits, Dublin 8, almost needed fisherman's waders yesterday morning after floods swamped ground-floor flats and covered cars in the underground car park. Dublin Corporation engineers were still assessing the cause of the flood yesterday but it is believed there may have a blockage in the River Poddle.
Residents awoke yesterday to find inches of water lapping around their homes and in the corridors of the apartment block. Outside, workmen battled to drain away a torrent in which cars were marooned
"When I opened my front door, it [the hall] was flooded in seconds. Now it is in the bedroom, the kitchen and the living room," said one resident, Mr Georges Santonacci.
"Since the beginning we have had a problem with the basement car park because there was always water there. There are three or four pumps in the basement and they are always working.
Around 10 cars had completely disappeared under water in the underground car park, said Ms Patricia McNally, a member of the residents' committee.
"There was water up to the bonnets of the cars in the street. I was ringing my mother but I don't think she believed," she said. "Seemingly, the complex is built on the River Poddle."
Mr Padraig Brennan, a contract manager with McCabe Builders, who built the apartments, confirmed there was a small underground river in the area but he said he did not know what had caused the flooding.
Initially, he thought there had been a burst water main but it was possible that the river burst its banks and the water had risen to the surface.
"At the moment, we will have to wait for a response from Dublin Corporation. Obviously, when I heard about it I was very concerned, but I really don't what the problem is. There was a maintenance man in the area and he said the whole street was blocked and houses had also been flooded."
Over at The Tenters pub nearby, staff were baling out the cellar and assessing the loss of stock. The cellar of the pub bore the brunt of the flood, although staff had to sweep six inches of water from the bar when they were alerted to the problem at 8 a.m. Prizes for a Christmas raffle were damaged, along with other bar stock.