Clery’s to remain closed in coming days after significant water damage

Clery’s Department store on O’Connell Street in Dublin will remain closed in the coming days after it incurred “significant water damage” during heavy rainfall and thunderstorms last night.

“ Works continue to assess the full extent of damage, and consequently the Department Store will remain closed over the coming days,” the company said in a statement this evening.

The roof of the iconic Dublin shop was damaged at about 12.10am, followed by significant water damage. Damage can be seen inside the ground floor area where ceiling tiles have fallen and broken onto the floor. At the front door water can be seen seeping out. Water is dripping from upper floors where condensation is also visible from windows.

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Passing shoppers peer into Clery’s on O’Connell Street as the store remains closed due to water damage .Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times

Most of the windows are covered with black plastic and others have signs reading “Due to water damage this store is not trading today. We apologise for any inconvenience caused”.

Last September Clerys was taken over by a Boston-based private equity group Gordon Brothers .

The move came hours after an announcement was released that joint receivers had been appointed to Clery & Co (1941) plc after a request by the company’s directors.

At the time Clerys employed 147 staff directly at the O’Connell Street store while more than 200 work for the 49 concessionaires there.

The O’Connell Street store opened in 1853, albeit under a different name. It was taken over in 1941 by by Kerryman Denis Guiney and his family. It had survived two world wars, a civil war and many recessions but debts relating to the Celtic Tiger property bubble almost brought its closure. Clerys lost €2 million in the year to the end of January 2011.