Dundalk-Newry rail line suspended after stormy weather brings water onto tracks

An Irish Rail spokesperson said the water caused subsidence on the tracks.

Jan 4th 2018, 8:16 PM 8,512 15

Bus transfers will remain in place for remainder of evening between Dundalk and Newry due to subsidence on line north of Dundalk. Service update for tomorrow will be confirmed later this evening
— Iarnród Éireann (@IrishRail) January 4, 2018

Source: Iarnród Éireann/Twitter

IRISH RAIL HAS suspended services between Dundalk and Newry this evening, after a section of the track was saturated by a nearby stream causing subsidence.

A spokesperson for Irish Rail told TheJournal.ie that crews are currently investigating the incident on the track by an embankment four miles north of Dundalk.

“The stream there has swollen, and has saturated the ground,” the spokesperson said. “So we have closed the line for this evening.”

Subsidence – the phenomenon when earth shifts downwards often causing damage to buildings – is a particular concern on train lines, potentially making travel unsafe.

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It is hoped that the track will be fit for use again in the morning. “Even if on a single track while crews work on the other one,” they said.

Bus transfers are currently in operation and will remain in place for the rest of the evening.

Read: 14 dead and 190 injured after train ploughs into truck in South Africa

Read: Flooding, fallen trees and power outages as Storm Eleanor passes through the country

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