SOME 230 homes in the northwest will be without electricity until this morning following yesterday’s gale force winds which resulted in a loss of power to almost 25,500 households.
Extensive damage was caused across the country by winds which reached storm force in parts with speeds of up to 140km/h. This resulted in large numbers of falling trees and branches damaging electricity power lines.
By lunchtime 25,500 homes were without power, largely along the western seaboard, but 5,000 households were also without electricity in north Dublin and the midlands.
A spokesman for the ESB last night said that it had restored power to all but 200 houses in Letterkenny and 30 in Killybegs, Co Donegal, but that repairs to these homes would get underway at first light today.
Repair crews were being hampered by the high winds yesterday and were having difficulty reaching some high power lines.
For safety reasons they would not be able to work after dark so some homes would have to wait until early morning before electricity was restored.
In Donegal motorists had a lucky escape when a huge 40ft steel container was blown across a road by winds which reached more than 130km/h.
The container blocked the Doochary to Dungloe Road for several hours.
The recently built Mulroy Bridge linking Fanad with Carrigart was also closed for most of the day because of gales which reached force 10 at times.
Dozens of ESB poles were knocked down in several towns including Killygordan, Ballybofey, Letterkenny and Donegal town, and on the Inishowen Peninsula.There were fallen trees in Muff, Letterkenny, Raphoe, Ballybofey, Convoy, Malin and Carndonagh. There were no reports of any injuries, however.
Drifting flowers from whitethorn bushes driven by storm force winds gave an appearance of “blizzard” conditions in parts of north Mayo yesterday.
Gardaí in Ballina took the unusual step of warning motorists of the phenomenon.
About 800 customers in the Swinford area were left without electricity for some time due to damaged cables. ESB customers along the exposed Erris coastline were also subject to outages.
Mayo County Council reported a number of trees down on roads in the Castlebar, Partry and Turlough areas but there were no reports of injuries. Galway Mountain Rescue Team went to the aid of a group of climbers trapped by high winds near the summit of Diamond Hill, Letterfrack, and led them to safety.
The weather is set to remain unsettled for the coming days although winds are not likely to be as strong, according to Met Éireann.
While today will stay mostly dry, rain will spread eastwards tomorrow and winds will again rise.
Thursday will be more showery but will remain blustery. However, windy periods will be of shorter duration and are unlikely to cause the same damage as yesterday.
Members of the public are asked to stay away from damaged power cables and to contact the ESB on 1850 372 999 if their electricity supply has been affected.