Waterford: Waterford's quays were closed to traffic for a number of hours last night as the rising tide caused the River Suir to overflow its banks.
For the second night in succession, sandbags were placed at the entrances to business premises and a number of hotels, which spent yesterday counting the cost of the first flooding.
Hoteliers blamed the wash generated from traffic on the quay on Wednesday night for the damage to their premises.
At their insistence, gardaí and Waterford City Council yesterday took the decision to close off the road at high tide.
A Garda spokesman said that all traffic had been diverted on alternative routes to and from Rice Bridge and the road closure was remaining in place until the tide had receded.
Meanwhile, sections of the main Waterford/Tramore Road were also flooded, though passable, and a large amount of water had lodged on the main Waterford/Limerick road at Grannagh.
In the city itself, the most vulnerable areas were Park Road, Bath Street, Poleberry and Johnstown.
With the prospect of the main Waterford/Tramore road being closed to traffic, members of Tramore Town Council have expressed anger over the decision by the Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works, Mr Tom Parlon, eliminating the road from a flooding relief programme.
Meanwhile, members claim, around 8,000 people living in Tramore risk being cut off from the city every time it rains heavily.
However, in recent months, Mr Parlon said that the cost of raising the level of the road could not be justified at this time.