40,000 see water restored as Uisce Éireann repairs Storm Darragh damage

Uisce Éireann crews have been working across the country to restore water supplies impacted by the ferocious Storm Darragh.

Since Saturday, December 7, approximately 40,000 additional customers have had their water supply restored.

Many areas which lost water can expect to see their supply returning over the course of Sunday, December 8.

However there are a number of locations where it will take longer to restore supply.

These are generally areas where ongoing power outages have impacted on treatment plants and network pumping stations.

Current estimates indicate that 35 of 698 water treatment plants are currently affected due to storm-related issues.

They include the Manorcunningham in Donegal and some Letterkenny areas, Carrick-on-Shannon in Co Leitrim, Longford town, Trim in Co Meath and parts of North Cork around Kanturk and Newmarket.

READ MORE: 80,000 now remain without power as ESB works to address Storm Darragh outages 

In some instances, repairs have been complicated by bursts on the network which may take longer to fix.

Margaret Attridge, Head of Water Operations with Uisce Éireann, said, “Our crews have been on the ground since yesterday trying to restore supply as soon as it was safe to do so. We have been carrying out repairs across the network and deploying generators and alternative water supplies as needed. We are also working closely with the ESB to return power to key water treatment plants and wastewater assets,

“We would like to thank the public for their support and patience. Where supplies have been restored it may take a number of hours for normal supply to return to all customers, particularly those on higher ground or at the ends of the network.  In these areas in particular, we would remind people to continue to conserve water where possible to allow reservoirs and networks to refill as quickly as possible,” she added. 

For live updates on impacted sites across the country, customers are advised to visit the Uisce Éireann Supply and Services page here. 

Customers can also check their social media channels for updates and contact the service via their 24/7 customer care centre at 1800 278 278.

People can also sign up online to a free text alert system to get regular updates about their local supplies, see www.water.ie.