Heavy rain likely over next few days

The weather will continue to be unsettled today and into the weekend, but there is little prospect of a repeat of the unusually heavy rain of earlier this week, according to Met Eireann.

Heavy showers are expected in most areas over the next three days. These are likely to be more persistent in the west and south, which can expect one or even two inches of rainfall daily. Temperatures will be slightly lower than of late.

The expected rainfall should not add significantly to existing flooding, but it will not alleviate the problem either, according to a Met spokesman.

While the south and south-east continue to suffer the worst of the flooding, areas as far north as Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, have been affected. The Dargle Road between Enniskerry and Bray was partly blocked by a mudslide yesterday morning, while the Cookstown Road linking Powerscourt and the N11 suffered flooding after a day of torrential rain.

In Kerry, part of the Limerick road between Tarbert and Glin flooded last night after heavy showers, and gardai were urging caution on this and all roads in the north of the county.

Problems caused by the rain were exacerbated by an oil spillage, thought to be from a leaking tanker, which affected up to 18 miles of the road between Listowel and Cork. The two worst affected areas were at Smerla Bridge, near Listowel, and Fealesbridge, about 15 miles from the town on the Cork road. Warning signs were erected and the roads gritted, but motorists were still being advised to drive with care.

In the midlands, there was continued heavy rain yesterday, but roads in Offaly were reported clear. While emergency drainage work on Tuesday had eased flooding on the Athy-Stradbally road in Laois, gardai were predicting further problems last night arising from a day of heavy rainfall.

Carlow, scene of some of the worst flooding in recent years, has survived the latest deluge well, thanks to dredging work carried out on the River Barrow last winter. There was sporadic, small-scale flooding around the town in the past few days, but no major problems.

In Waterford, the "new" Tramore Road remained flooded yesterday, but passable.