Cavan copes with first flurry of snow

As the east coast grinds to a halt life goes on for most of Cavan. The majority of the county has thus far escaped the ravages of the Beast from the East, however Ballyjamesduff, Mullagh, Crosskeys and Virginia are all getting the brunt of the bad weather.

Heavy snowfall in the eastern region has affected many services. Bus Éireann says services to/from Cavan are cancelled. At present no services are operating from Cavan until situation improves, services are cancelled including 109X, 111A and 187.

All Expressway services from Dublin are cancelled. Expressway services from outside Eastern Region are unable to operate past Dublin Airport/into Dublin.

Station Road Mart in Cootehill is closed today for the safety of the public and animals and there may be disruption to milk collections during the coming days. The treacherous weather conditions forecast have resulted in companies warning about the impact on lorry movements.

Although many secondary schools across Cavan remain open a few have succumbed to the hazardous conditions. Closures include Virginia College, Saint Patrick’s National School Shercock and Saint Killian’s National School in Mullagh as well as a number of other National Schools.

The ESB is warning of prolonged power outages as temperatures plummet to as low as -7C and the prospect of thunder and lightning. However, the utility has given a commitment not to disconnect any homes from their power supply during the cold weather.

Dublin has been particularly hit by the 'weather event' with public transport, schools and

A number of flights in Dublin Airport were cancelled this morning as runway operations were forced to cease for a time.

The weather is set to continue to deteriorate over the coming days and the incoming storm system, Storm Emma, will bring a second snow event on Thursday.

Met Eireann has issued a Red Warning for the capital and adjacent counties, while a Status Orange alert is in place in Carlow, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Wexford, Offaly, Westmeath, Cork, Tipperary and Waterford. A Status Yellow alert is in place for Donegal, Galway, Clare and Limerick.

Senior Engineer over roads and infrastructure with Cavan County Council, Brendan Jennings, says the local authority have been making preparations for the conditions: “Aside from the snow there is severe frost forecast. We have our trucks ready and the salting routes will be salted at all times. All our vehicles are ready to go. If the snow does appear, which is very likely, we have our snow ploughs ready.”

The council has made salt/grit available across the county with locations on the Anglo Celt website and the council's website. Mr Jennings said that Cavan County Council are prepared to stockpiling salt and grit at locations across the county: “We will be making information available to the public over the next 24 hours. It is a mechanism for people on local roads to assist themselves.”

Mr Jennings said the local authority will do everything possible to keep the public apprised of what is happening: “This is a changing situation. People should keep an eye on our website, Facebook page and our twitter feed for more information on the conditions and how to deal with them.”