The sheer speed and severity of Storm Debi left home and business owners in Oranmore in Galway with little or no time to protect their properties overnight, according to locals.
The village took the brunt of last night’s storm, with surging tides and strong winds damaging a number of homes and businesses in the area. The sudden storm surge also tore through a 100m long section of the seawall on the coast road between Oranmore and Galway.
A large section of a seawall also collapsed south of the village, between Oranmore and Renville, and driving conditions in the area remain extremely dangerous.
Emergency services and members of the local community began the clean-up operation this morning, but it is expected to be some time before all the damage can be repaired.
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Michael White is the owner of Oran Decor and DIY, one of the oldest and best-known businesses in the village. He says he was met with “carnage” when he opened the door to his shop this morning, describing the scene as a “tornado” of water.
“The first I had a notion that there was an issue was when I came to Joyce’s roundabout [50 metres from the shop] and that was flooded. I didn’t have a good feeling when I saw that. It was all so sudden,” he said.
“I came in, opened the door, and it all came out in front of me. I was here at 8.20am, I met seaweed at the door, that wasn’t a good sign. I opened the door and the water came flooding out. This has never happened to me before, nothing like this. Not as long as I have been here.”
The speed in which Storm Debi was upgraded from a yellow alert, to an orange and then a red alert took many local people by surprise.
“The first I heard that this storm might be bad, was last night at around 8.30pm. Suddenly there was a red warning. We had no chance to do anything at that stage,” said Mr White.
“Even at that time, the warning was more for east Galway than for us; we didn’t realise it was going to hit here as badly as it did. Oranmore has been hit the worst of any place in the country by the looks of things.”
As a team of family and friends work to clear the flood waters out of the shop, Mr White says his main focus is on reopening, rather than longer term issues such as insurance.
“It’s carnage, the stock is destroyed, there is flooding all over the shop. It’s like there was a tornado in here. I found stuff that was in the front of the shop, down the back of the shop. It’s destroyed, absolutely destroyed,” he said.
“I don’t know how I am fixed for insurance yet. I’m trying to tidy this place up first and foremost. I’m trying to get back into a position to open the business again. That’s the most important thing. I’ll worry about the insurance later on. The first thing is to get this mess sorted out and get open again. I’m providing a service here for the village.
“We want to get this place back up and running as soon as possible for the people of Oranmore. The shop is like an institution in the village.”