‘Freak’ floods wreak havoc across Inishowen
Bridgend, Burnfoot and Burt worst affected as floods create mudslide on busy main road
A massive thunderstorm wreaked havoc across Inishowen on Tuesday evening, leaving many local residents in fear that floods would destroy their homes.
Despite many areas in the peninsula experiencing torrential rain on Tuesday, it would appear that the majority of the destruction was concentrated in South Inishowen, around Bridgend, Burnfoot and Burt.
The heavy rainfall, which occurred over a short period of time around 7pm, led to a the bank bursting at the Rockhead Road in Burnfoot causing a landslide and blocking a section of the main Derry to Buncrana road.
There was some traffic disruption, as mud flew down the main road from the bursting bank. Gardaí were on the scene and motorists were restricted to using one lane only for a period of time.
Many local residents, particularly those living on the Brae Road area of Burnfoot feared that the water would come into their homes as the rivers of rainwater gushed down their drives and through their gardens.
The popular 19th Hole Pub in Bridgend and the busy Callaghan’s Shop in Burt were both flooded during the torrential rain shower.
Local Councillor Jack Murray said the ‘freak’ flooding came from nowhere, but he praised the Council roads staff for their quick reaction to the downpour.
“Everything seemed to happen at once,” said Cllr. Murray. “Within a short space of time an incredible amount of water fell on south Inishowen. I received dozens of calls from local residents reporting roads overflowing and whose homes were in danger of flooding.
“Thankfully local roads engineers and senior council staff were available for constant contact throughout the night and made every effort to address the situation. The Gardaí were also quick to the scene and both worked together to direct motorists.”
The Sinn Féin councillor said he believed the affects of the storm could have been much worse.
“It is difficult to plan for a freakish storm such the one on Tuesday evening and while some homes were unfortunately flooded, we were lucky to have such a speedy response from local staff to ensure that the situation wasn’t a lot worse,” he added.
