A major investigation was under way in Leinster House yesterday following a series of leaks throughout the parliament building.
It could be classified as a Flood tribunal with a difference, as employees investigated the extensive damage caused by Wednesday's torrential rain. The deluge left a large communications deficit at the centre of power, wiping out telephone lines and bringing down the computer system.
The rains also caused water to flood in from the roof of Leinster House 2000, the new £25 million extension, and down one of its lift shafts.
Employees reported that buckets had to be put down in the atrium foyer to collect the rain.
The worst damage, however, was done to the room which houses the Leinster House telephone exchange.
A pipe from the roof, sealed inside the wall, burst spectacularly, spraying water on to 1,500 telephone lines.
When the phone system shorted, it was assumed it had been caused by lightning but the rush of water into the corridor told a different story.
The room is located in the basement of the original building, adjacent to the entrance to the new building.
"It's like little Venice over there," said one Leinster House employee yesterday.
One party worker said he had been told it would be early next week before the telephones would be fixed. "It's a good job the Dail is not sitting at the moment or it would be chaotic."
A spokeswoman for Leinster House said engineers would work through the night to get the telephone system operational. The computer system was also affected by the downpour after the server got "a little bit wet". It was back working within an hour.
The spokeswoman also explained that a door leads from the roof of the fourth floor of the extension and that water, although not a large amount, had leaked in through there and into the lift shaft. "Some water got into the lifts; as a precaution we switched them off."
The water in the atrium, she said, was not caused by leaks but by windows not being closed in time.
There was strong criticism last October when the new building was not fully ready for occupation. Once settled in, a number of TDs said they were very pleased with the additional space. There are ongoing complaints, however, about high temperatures in the largely glass building.