Clean-up continues as Storm Isha leaves destruction in Donegal

Storm Isha left a trail of destruction and disruption across Donegal.

Tens of thousands were left without power into Monday morning as the full effects of the storm - one of the worst ever to hit Donegal - were felt.

Over 40,000 homes and businesses were left in the dark on Sunday night as Storm Isha lashed the county causing widespread havoc.

Gerry Murphy, a meteorologist with Met Éireann, confirmed a gust of 133km/h, the peak wind speed in Donegal, was recorded at around 11pm on Sunday at the Malin Head Weather Station.

Fallen trees, ESB poles, electrical wires and other debris were strewn across roads in all parts of Donegal. Travel was affected into Monday as the clean-up operation began.

Donegal County Council’s roads and fire services and the Civil Defence were placed at a heightened state of readiness on Sunday with sandbags deployed to high-risk areas in advance of the storm.

ESB crews were rallying on Monday morning to restore power, but many thousands were still in the black. Although most schools in the county were closed, any that could open did so.

“We felt the impact right across the county,” said Bryan Cannon, Donegal County Council’s Director of Roads and Transportation. “There are significant numbers of homes and businesses without power and structural damage to a number of properties. Even the mobile phone network was disrupted.”

Met Éireann issued a Status Red alert, prompting people to batten down the hatches.

Mr Cannon told how there were a lot of instances of spot flooding while trees were down from early on Sunday afternoon.

By nightfall, Gardai in Donegal issued an update stating: ‘There is hardly a road in the county at this stage that has not got fallen trees on it”.

Fallen electrical poles and wires added to the chaos. At some locations, including Carndonagh and Letterbarrow, sparks flew from live wires ‘and the situation is very dangerous’, the Council said.

The Monday morning Donegal-Dublin flight from Donegal Airpot was cancelled while Bus Éireann cancelled its Expressway services in the county on Sunday afternoon. The service was restored again by Monday.

The Harry Blaney Bridge closed completely on Sunday night with several roads the length and breadth of the county blocked with either fallen trees or deposited debris. The N56 near Killybegs and the N15 outside Stranorlar were among the many roads blocked overnight.

In Killygordon, a silo tipped over at the Aurivo plant while a part of the roof at the Finn Valley Leisure Centre blew off on Sunday night. Aluminium sheeting was displaced and the facility remained closed on Monday as management assessed the extent of the damage.