FLOODS in Clonmel, Co Tipperary, receded yesterday but the local authority said that all emergency services would remain on alert to guard against further damage to property.
Up to 50 private and commercial properties in the town have suffered extensive flood damage, while up to 100 others have been affected by water seeping into basement areas.
With poor weather again forecast for the next few days, it is likely to be some time next week before the full picture emerges, according to Mr Conn Murray, town clerk of Clonmel.
Clonmel Corporation has requested a meeting with the Taoiseach to discuss compensation for the victims of the flooding, mainly middle aged and elderly people whose homes have been hit for the second time in a year.
Most homeowners have been unable to insure their properties because of the inherent threat of flooding in Clonmel, and a case for special consideration is to be put to the Government even though the Minister for the Environment, Mr Howlin, has said no State funding is available.
Yesterday, the flow of water in the River Suir abated and two bridges - the Gas Works Bridge and the Old Bridge - were reopened. Convent Bridge, however, remained closed.
Mr Murray said that the final cost of the flood damage would not be known until weather conditions had improved sufficiently to allow the Civil Defence and other services to enter the stricken homes and carry out a full assessment.
He added that the corporation would liaise with Clonmel Chamber of Commerce to draw up a detailed inventory of the many business premises which suffered damage. When this has been completed, a case will also be made to the EU for special emergency' funding.
Although Clonmel Corporation" has discounted claims that work on an ongoing main drainage scheme near the river has exacerbated the flooding problem, many business people, as well as elected members of the corporation itself, believe that there is a direct link between the work and the heightened level of flooding.
Following a meeting of the 12 member corporation on Tuesday, at which flood damage was the only item on the agenda, the corporation has agreed to review a hydrological survey which was carried out before the main drainage scheme. However, officials insisted that the best expert advice available to the local authority suggested the project would have no adverse effect on the river.
Gardai and Civil Defence, Fire Brigade and Army personnel were on duty again yesterday in the Quay area at the southern end of the town as life slowly began to return to normal.
Fianna Fail MEP Mr Gerard Collins has called on the European Commission to use all available funds to alleviate the "disastrous losses and hardship" caused to people by the flooding in Clonmel, Cork city, Mallow, Clonakilty and elsewhere.