LAST UPDATE | 29 Mar 2019

THE NEW GARDA regional headquarters in Galway has been evacuated due to flooding. 

The headquarters houses an emergency call answering service for local 112/999 calls.

The leak was discovered at around 4pm this afternoon, after water from a kitchen area leaked through service ducts and flooded the main communications room in the building.

A garda spokesperson confirmed the communications room at the western garda regional headquarters in Renmore was “temporarily evacuated” as a result. 

“The alarm was raised at 4pm and the building was safely evacuated,” the spokesperson said.

ECAS (Emergency Call Answering Service) have been notified and all 999 calls have been re-diverted to the relevant Garda Divisional Headquarters. There OPW are on site and the situation is being reviewed.

The new facility, which cost more than €28 million, was opened by Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan and then Acting Garda Commissioner Dónall Ó’Cualáin in July 2018.

It includes secure detention areas, incident management facilities, a unit to support victims of crime, public offices, garages and property storage facilities. It also houses training facilities such as a firing range for specialist units.

Images from inside the building show extensive flooding in some areas of the station. 

It is understood that a burst pipe caused the damage in the communications room, and that the extent of damage to equipment will be assessed in coming days.

It is also believed that the room will be out of service for a number of days, and that communications will move to other stations to ensure the service is not disrupted.