Killarney flooding was the ‘worst in a lifetime’, says mayor

What caused the Killarney flooding

A yellow rain warning in place for several counties expired at 6am after a night of heavy rainfall.

Kerry County Council reported "torrential downpours" and flash flooding in parts of the county.

Mayor of Killarney and Councillor John O'Donoghue told RTÉ Radio 1's Today that the flooding came as a "huge shock" and caused "huge destruction."

"I believe almost six centimeters of rain fell in a four-hour period, but the majority of that was concentrated in about a 90-minute window," he said.

"So it completely overwhelmed the entire area, I suppose, like any town."

'The whole town was submerged'

Cllr O'Donoghue said it was the "first time in living memory that the whole town was submerged under flood water", where Killarney would normally see flooding localised to one street or road.

It would seem as if a river had burst its banks, he said, but "this incredibly all fell out of the sky".

He was not attaching blame, adding that "if there was twice the amount of drains in the town it wouldn't have coped".

What happens now

Kerry County Council crews are assessing the impact today and liaising with affected properties.

Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre is among the buildings damaged and has been closed.

Businesses opened this morning "with bated breath", the mayor said. Once the clean-up is finished, the council will look at how to mitigate against a repeat.

It lands the same week a new levy to fund sustainable flood insurance was proposed, and days after the Nepal floods death toll rose to 469.