Updated 7.40pm
TWO PEOPLE HAD to be rescued from their cars in Kildare this evening as flash flooding hit the back roads between Naas and Straffan.
The lucky man and woman were taken from their cars by National Ambulance Service paramedics who were in the area – en route to a non-urgent call.
The water had started to seep into the woman’s BMW near the Blue Door and she was getting “quite scared”.
A source from the National Ambulance Service told TheJournal.ie that it has been “a horrendous day” on the roads.
Earlier today, Met Éireann issued an orange rainfall warning for Dublin and surrounding counties.
And if you were thinking “sure, it’ll ease off”, you’re out of luck.
The weather service says that “a spell of heavy rain” today will be followed by “another spell of heavy rain [tonight]” that will give rainfall of 40mm to 60mm with localised flooding.
So, in other words, heavy rain followed by more heavy rain.
Dublin, Louth, Wexford, Wicklow, Meath and Monaghan will get the worst of the rain, and the warning will remain in place until 9am tomorrow.
The rest of the country will fare better, but not by much. There is a yellow rainfall warning for Munster, Connacht, Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Offaly, Westmeath, Cavan and Donegal that will be in effect until tonight.
As for the weekend’s weather, Met Éireann says it will be “very mixed”. For a change.
Traffic
The rain has led to traffic chaos around the country.
The East Link in Dublin was closed for a period this evening, but has since reopened.
Here’s the Monasterboice area this evening. (Thanks Tony McArdle for the photo)
All of this flooding is because this is what Ireland looked like earlier today:
Your view
Some of our readers have sent in what they’ve been seeing today.
Hugh sent this from Lucan:
Michelle O’Reilly sent these from Castleblayney Road in Dundalk.
And this is the biblical scene in Rathoath.
But some people aren’t bothered by it at all.
This man was spotted swimming in Portmarnock today.
While these windsurfers joined him to make the most of it.
First published 3.45pm. Additional reporting Christina Finn and Sinéad O’Carroll
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