The ESB, which manages water levels at the Parteen Weir that feeds the Ardnacrusha Power Station below Lough Derg, has defended its response to the crisis.
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The National Emergency Co-Ordination Centre has warned that rising water levels along the Shannon means there is a high risk of flooding along the river from Limerick city up as far as Athlone.
“The key message is the river levels are still rising in the mid to lower catchment and there are small rises in the upper catchment area around Carrick-on-Shannon”, spokesman Jim Casey said.
The Government is finalising the details of a €5m fund for businesses which have been hit by flooding and may not have been able to secure insurance due to their location in flood-prone areas.
RESIDENTS and businesses face an agonising wait through the weekend to discover the extent of the flooding crisis after being told that water levels in the River Shannon will not peak until Monday morning.
Councils have been asked to convene flood assessments and pinpoint vulnerable areas in advance of the next weather system.
In Northern Ireland numerous roads remains closed across counties Fermanagh, Tyrone, Antrim and Armagh. Three areas along the river considered at high risk of further flooding will also have emergency drinking water points set up by the Red Cross: Athlone, Portumna and the Montpelier.
The Road Safety Authority (RSA) said the continued rain will create potentially hazardous conditions.
Outside of the main Shannon basin, towns and villages along the Lee in Cork were also braced for floods while large swathes of rural Mayo were also under water.
The discharge along the Shannon through Parteen Weir has reached 375 cubic metres per second in recent days. Between 20 to 35 mm of additional rainfall are expected there today.
Met Éireann has issued two Status Yellow weather warnings for today.
There’s also a possibility of sleet and snow over Munster, Connacht and the midlands.
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Elsewhere, a boil water notice for Ballinasloe, put in place after a local treatment plant was inundated, is expected to be lifted next week.
