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Updated 10.35pm
STORM ELEANOR CAUSED destruction as it passed through the country tonight.
Some 55,000 homes are without power as flooding and fallen trees are being reported in several counties.
Road users are being advised to take extra care, however much of the flooding reported earlier this evening has now receded.
Galway was badly hit by heavy coastal flooding and cars were abandoned in the Oranmore area earlier this evening.
Defence Forces were called in to assist Galway County Council.
Two Status Orange wind warnings have now expired but one Status Orange and one Status Yellow warning are currently in place.
The Status Orange wind warning is for Galway, Mayo, Clare, Cork and Kerry, while the Status Yellow wind warning is for Leinster, Cavan, Monaghan, Roscommon, Tipperary and Waterford.
Both warnings will remain in place until 2pm tomorrow
Galway
High tide in Galway coincided with the arrival of this afternoon’s storm system.
AA Roadwatch says most flooding has receded in Galway city centre. It’s reporting that Lough Atalia Rd, Dock Rd, Eglinton St, Dominick St and Flood St are now passable and the Promenade in Salthill has reopened.
Spot flooding has also receded in Oranmore town.
Local councillor Peter Keane, speaking to RTÉ’s Drivetime from Galway docks, said the sea wall was breached during rush hour this evening, and slammed the Council response as “unacceptable”.
Roads should have been closed earlier in the day due to the storm forecast, he said – describing the scene as “chaos”.
RTÉ reported earlier that a number of cars were swept away by flash floods in Oranmore and that people were evacuated from cars at a roundabout in the town.
The Shannon Coast Guard helicopter was tasked to attend the scene but was stood down after those involved escaped unharmed, according to RTÉ’s report.
Roads
Gardaí in Sligo Town and Ballymote are advising motorists not to travel due to a large number of fallen trees across the county.
Gibraltar Road in Sligo town is impassable due to flooding and spot flooding has also been reported on the Rosses Point Rd (R291) just outside of Sligo town.
A number of roads in Leitrim and Cavan are also impassable due to fallen trees.
There were also reports of flooding this evening in Cork city centre, in Limerick city, and in counties Wexford and Mayo, according to AA Roadwatch.
AA Roadwatch is now reporting that flooding in Cork city centre on Union Quay, George’s Quay, part of South Terrace and on Morrison’s Quay is subsiding.
However, in Midleton in Cork, there’s still flooding on the Bailick Road.
In Limerick, motorists are advised to avoid streets along the River Shannon.
Travel
Bus Eireann cancelled a number of its services due to flooding earlier in the evening.
Dublin and Shannon Airports are both also advising customers to check with their airline for the latest flight information.
Irish Rail have reported that the Limerick to Ennis line and Waterford Station have both reopened following earlier flooding.
Emergency services
Speaking to TheJournal.ie, a spokesperson for Dublin Fire Brigade said that all of its units were extremely busy attending to scenes all over the east coast this evening.
It attended the scene of fallen trees in Clondalkin, and an incident involving a crane at Lansdowne Road.
Storm’s arrival
Just before 5pm today, Bantry Fire Brigade sent out this picture of flooding and warned drivers to be careful.
This was the scene in Fenit in Co Kerry earlier this evening as the storm arrived.
Clare County Council warned people earlier that there was a risk of coastal flooding around the Shannon Estuary.
ESB Networks also advised customers to keep an eye on the progress of the storm on Met Eireann and to charge phones, tablets and laptops to pre-empt any possible power cuts.
You can check power outages in your local area on the ESB’s Powercheck tool, here.
Additional reporting by Daragh Brophy and Cliódhna Russell.
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