WINDS GUSTING at more than 100km/h and torrential rain brought down power lines, blocked roads and caused the cancellation of ferries at the weekend.
A wind speed of 105km/h was recorded at Casement Aerodrome, Co Dublin, yesterday morning while some parts of the south and southeast had 55 millimetres (2.16 inches) of rain.
The unseasonably bad weather was blamed on an Atlantic depression.
Rain was worst in the south and southeast of the country, while the winds were strongest in an area from the far west of Galway and Mayo through the midlands and into the Dublin region.
A medical clinic was flooded and several young people attending a Westlife concert had to be treated for hypothermia, following torrential rain and a thunderstorm in Galway city on Saturday evening.
Galway Fire Brigade responded to some 50 call-outs due to flash flooding during the downpour, and the Westdoc GP medical service in Liosban estate was forced to move out of its premises temporarily.
Flooding affected roads in the docks and Salthill area. The Corrandulla Agricultural Show was cancelled yesterday due to weather conditions.
Cork fell foul of torrential weather conditions on Saturday night, with the North Ring Road, Curragh Road and Lough Road areas of the city being subjected to flash flooding.
Heavy rain also caused minor flooding on country roads.
Roads in west Cork were described as being dangerous on Saturday evening due to widespread surface water, while heavy rainfall caused localised flooding in north and east Cork. The wet weather left surface water on parts of the main Cork to Dublin Road, the N22 Mallow Road and the N25 eastwards.
However, the poor conditions failed to disrupt the Dolly Parton concert in Cork on Saturday evening and her concert last night at Nowlan Park in Kilkenny went ahead as scheduled.
High winds brought down trees all over Dublin.
A fallen tree on the busy Mount Merrion Avenue near the Rock Road caused widespread traffic disruption yesterday morning. A fallen tree also blocked traffic at Harold's Grange Road in Rathfarnham, while trees were down in Clonliffe Road, Thomas Street, Cullareeva Road, the Glenageary roundabout, Palmerston Road in Rathgar, Bunting Road in Walkinstown and Clonard Road, Crumlin.
The high winds brought down power lines in Roscommon and Mayo affecting 500 customers, while a lightning strike knocked out power at an ESB sub-station in Connemara, Co Galway, leaving 2,000 customers without power for a time.
Around 800 Eircom customers were left without telephone services for a time yesterday and engineers were working on restoring services last night. Some 200 homes in Glenamoy, Co Mayo, were without a phone service.
Fast ferries were also cancelled yesterday. Irish Ferries cancelled its 8.45am Swift sailing from Dublin to Holyhead; Stena Line cancelled its 11.10am Stena Explorer from Dun Laoghaire to Holyhead and its Stena Express Fast Ferry from Rosslare to Fishguard.
Met Éireann forecaster Vincent O'Shea said the worst of the weather had passed over and this week would see a return to showery, unsettled conditions.
"It is going to be changeable for the rest of the week and not at all summery. It is going to be cloudy, but we don't expect a repeat of the weekend's wind or rain," he said.
