Laois County Council’s Severe Weather Crisis Management Team met today at 12.00pm to assess the ongoing situation. The meeting was attended by An Garda Siochana, HSE, and all Laois County Council affected services such as Roads, Water Services, Housing, Fire Services and Civil Defence.
An ORANGE status weather warning remains in place for County Laois.
All Motorway and National routes and Priority 1 & 2 routes in Laois are now clear and operational – however drivers should continue to take extreme care. Certain other routes in the County are impassable and conditions on all other routes remain hazardous. Council ploughing / salting /gritting operations commenced at 4am this morning , such operations will continue, as required, over the coming days.
All Laois County Council outdoors crews are deployed at present, working at town centre locations and on county and local roads. Laois County Council have also engaged the support of 30 contractors to support us in our efforts to unblock as many local and county roads as possible and support the emergency services in reaching locations where incidents are arising. Over 50 locations on roads which were fully and/or partially blocked were cleared yesterday across the County.
We are conscious that there remain locations on some local minor roads where roads remain blocked due to large snow accumulations. We ask for your continued patience as Laois County Council crews endeavour, with the support of contractors and the Defence Forces personnel, to clear these blocked routes as soon as possible. Personnel from the Defence Forces are also assisting with the clearance of footpaths in town centre locations and footpaths near schools, hospitals and medical centres across the County. Some examples of work in progress can be seen in the photos.
Laois County Council also wishes to acknowledge the support being provided by the agricultural sector, building contractors and private individuals with access to plant and machinery, and their huge efforts and contribution in removing the large volumes of snow which have accumulated on our roads.
With regard to any potential flooding risk, the Council continues to monitor river levels at this time. These levels remain low and will be monitored on an ongoing basis.
The HSE advise that their services are returning to normal on a phased basis. Check with your local health centre or GP for further details.
Please be advised if you require the assistance of the emergency services please dial 999. The local number for the Severe Weather Communication Centre is 1890837273. Emergency shelter is available on request.
We would ask the public to check https://www.winterready.ie/en for information and advice on how to deal with potential adverse weather conditions affecting homeowners, businesses, farming community etc. Please also check on the elderly and isolated neighbours and friends and ensure they have adequate stocks of food and fuel.