Limerick council set up incident control room ahead of arrival of storm

LIMERICK City and County Council has established an incident control room ahead of the storm to ensure a co-ordinated response to incidents arising from Storm Éowyn.

The council’s Crisis Management Team met today as preparations for the destructive storm continue.

The Status Red level warning for wind will be in effect for Limerick from 2am to 10am Friday morning with gusts potentially exceeding 130 km/h.

Impacts from Storm Éowyn are expected to include danger to life and property, extremely dangerous travelling conditions, power and communications outages and coastal flooding. The advice is to shelter in place. Do not take chances that put yourself or others at risk.

The public can call 061 556000 at any time to report fallen trees, blocked roads or similar issues caused by the severe winter storm. Continue to call 999 or 112 for threat to life and other emergencies.

A Status Orange warning for wind will remain in effect for Limerick until 4pm on Friday with stormy conditions to persist into Friday evening.

People are being urged to show patience as the clearing of fallen trees and other debris will not begin until weather conditions are deemed to be safe.

Limerick City and County Council advises: Check on supplies of vital medications, secure anything that could blow away such as garden furniture, trampolines, flower pots etc as these could be turned into missiles in the wind. Take them indoors if possible. Don’t leave wheelie bins outside on footpaths or at front of houses. Be prepared for services to be out, charge mobile phones, have torches on standby with spare batteries. Don't leave candles unattended – they are a fire hazard. Don't make unnecessary journeys. Check on your neighbours, especially if they are elderly or vulnerable. Where possible bring your pets inside.

We are currently in a period of neap (moderate) tides and the discharge at Parteen Weir is low. This mitigates the risk of flooding, however Storm Éowyn will create a storm surge of up to 2.2m and some overtopping should be expected even where there are barriers.

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All flood barriers are in place in Limerick City and Foynes Port. Sandbags have been put in place to protect vulnerable properties in Askeaton.

High tides are at 1am and 1.30pm on Friday.

Water Safety Ireland is urging the public to stay away from waterways during Storm Éowyn.

Please remember: staying away from waterways is the safest option for you and your loved ones.

All calls received to the council on 061 556000 and calls received by Limerick Fire and Rescue Service through the Munster Regional Control Centre will be dynamically assessed to determine response.

Council crews will not mobilise during the red alert and even after that period will only respond when safe.

Limerick Fire and Rescue Service will only be responding to calls where there is a risk to life for the duration of the red level warning. Fire crews are on standby and crews have been stationed in the retained stations across the county.

Limerick Civil Defence are standing by ready to provide humanitarian assistance.

Outreach teams from the council's Homeless Action Team have been making contact with known rough sleepers to encourage them to take shelter. Additional beds are available during this storm event.

The Limerick Homeless Action Team can be contacted at Homeless@limerick.ie or call 061 557051 or 1800 606060 (out of hours).

People may also present at the Temporary Emergency Provision (TEP) at Edenvilla, Lord Edward Street at 9pm. This out of hours service is operated by NOVAS in collaboration with the Limerick Homeless Action Team.

There is sufficient accommodation to meet demand.