WHILE THE COUNTRY is experiencing severe weather, the people of Bundoran were caught by a particularly cruel twist of fate on Saturday morning.

Just hours after a major fundraiser was held to raise money for the RNLI lifeboat station in the Donegal town, massive waves battered the building, causing damage to the building.

(Pic: RNLI)

After the annual dinner dance on Friday night, crew began to arrive at the lifeboat station at around 7.20am and discovered the damage. Sea swells had broken down the main front door as well as the bottom panel in the large doors, behind which the lifeboat is kept.

Lifeboat Operations Manager for Bundoran RNLI Tony McGowan said that the damage was minimal, despite the size of the waves.

“Despite the force of the sea, we only suffered a small amount of damage and we are happy to note that the lifeboat itself wasn’t damaged and remained available for service.

Having viewed CCTV of the time of the impact, it was remarkable how one big surge which was at least two metres higher than the rest caused the damage.

“It is easy to see how people can be caught out in such conditions and I would urge people to keep well away from the water in such circumstances.”

Read: Rain the next concern, as flood warnings extended to inland areas

Read: The Burning Question*: Should you use a big umbrella on busy streets?