Very cool things to see in Wicklow…
Gardaí have released pictures of an old homestead and farm machinery that were uncovered by retreating water at a Wicklow lake.
The images show the ruins of a house along with some pieces of rusting machinery.
It’s thought the ruin could date back to 1940 when a number of vacant properties in the valley were flooded by the creation of the Poulaphuca Reservoir.
The most recent discovery was made by the Garda Air Support Unit while they were patrolling above Wicklow.
While patrolling the Wicklow division The Garda Air Support Unit noticed the ruins of a homestead and a piece of farm machinery (mowing bar) on a raised piece of land which had previously been submerges in the lakes. pic.twitter.com/JIco4vlgit
— An Garda Síochána (@GardaTraffic) September 14, 2018
It’s not the first thing to be revealed by Ireland’s uncharacteristically warm weather this summer.
Earlier this year, gorse fires ravaged many areas of the countryside and uncovered a coastal sign in Bray from World War II which was meant to communicate to potential Nazi bombers that they were flying over neutral Ireland.
A Garda Air Support Unit crew spotted that the fire on Bray Head has revealed an “EIRE” sign dating from the Second World War.
We see these around the coastline but haven’t seen this before. pic.twitter.com/I6cwIrIori
— An Garda Síochána (@GardaTraffic) August 4, 2018
In the early days of the Second World War the Irish government sought to take action to protect the neutrality it had declared in September 1939. It was decided that a series of lookout posts [“LOPs”] would be built at strategic points along the Irish coastline to monitor belligerent activity at sea.
The sign was made out of rocks placed in order to spell the word ‘EIRE’ on the headland.
It was recently restored by some generous volunteers.
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