Snow and freezing fog paralysed travel in much of the west yesterday, with Iarnrod Eireann providing the only reliable link with the east coast.
Further snow and sub-zero temperatures, as low as minus 10, forecast for last night may continue to hamper transport by road and air today. The Garda has appealed to the public to check on elderly neighbours.
With no provincial bus services running, and Galway Airport still closed, Iarnrod Eireann was forced to turn away more than 150 people from Ceannt Station in Galway yesterday morning. More than 600 people turned up for the mid-morning train that could only accommodate 400 at maximum. Travellers with return tickets were given priority, while others were put on standby, and there were long queues at the station throughout the day.
Mr Myles McHugh, business development manager of Iarnrod Eireann, said some of the backlog was cleared by early afternoon, and the priority was to assist people returning to work and those trying to meet urgent flight connections in Dublin. He appealed to people who did not need to travel to defer their plans until the situation improved.
Knock Airport in Co Mayo was open for flights yesterday, but all incoming flights were delayed due to weather conditions in Britain.
Small farmers struggled to get fodder to unhoused animals, and dairy farmers experienced delays in collections by bulk milk tankers. On some secondary routes, articulated tankers were unable to navigate the roads. Deliveries of animal meal were also affected.
In south Galway, where most recent Christmases have been marked by heavy flooding, Mr Michael Kelly of the Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) said most stock was indoors, apart from sheep. People were being sensible and staying at home. "It is so quiet down here that we could hear the Galway train, 15 miles away," he said.
Refuse collections and postal deliveries were cancelled in Galway city and county yesterday while in Mayo there are fears of flooding when the thaw sets in. Rivers and lakes are already brimming over, and land is saturated following the wettest autumn in recent history.
The Mayo county secretary, Mr Padraig Hughes, sounded an optimistic note when he said he expected the snow to melt slowly, leading to a gradual runoff into streams and rivers.
"We expect the thaw to have begun by Saturday evening, and that most of the snow cover, except in hilly areas, will have disappeared by Monday," Mr Hughes said. "We don't expect heavy rain, so that should lessen the danger of flooding."
Post-Christmas sales in Galway and Mayo have proved a flop so far this year, because roads in the region are too treacherous to travel. There was only a trickle of traffic yesterday on the gritted streets of towns such as Castlebar, Ballina and Westport, which would normally be bustling with activity. Some shops either closed early, to allow staff home, or did not open at all.
For those opting for a drop of the "craythur" during the wintry weather, there was a sober warning from a Connemara general practitioner. Dr Michael Casey of Carna told the Connacht Tribune that poitin could cause recurrent fits of epilepsy. The drink also poses threats to the liver and can cause anorexia, loss of appetite and memory loss, he said.
Roads throughout the west were hazardous yesterday with several inches of compacted snow covered in sheets of ice.
Freezing fog in coastal areas made travelling particularly difficult, and the Garda warned against any unnecessary travel.
Mayo gardai reported that the Westport-Clifden road was treacherous, particularly around Leenane. The Westport-Louisburgh route was also very dangerous, as were routes to and around Achill island. Belmullet Garda reported that main roads were passable, but secondary routes were not.
The Dublin-Galway road remained risky, particularly in the midlands around Athlone and Ballinasloe, and on the Craughwell-Oranmore stretch approaching Galway. Sub-zero temperatures and further snowfalls forecast for last night are expected to cause more problems today.
