Floody Hell! Rising water is causing the River Finn to burst its banks again

Floody Hell!

It's the only description one can use to describe the return of flooding along the River Finn today.

Residents, landowners and farmers are watching as the banks of the river have given way in several areas.

The rain and high winds are belting down on flood plain areas throughout east Donegal giving rise to fears that property and livestock could be in danger.

Levels are particularly high below Castlefin where historically the flood flows from the tributaries can not discharge freely to the Finn and these watercourses acted as a route for floodwaters to back up into the town.

This area along with Ballybofey-Stranorlar and Lifford are currently undergoing the development of flood relief options but it will be a few years yet before they have any impact.

Farmers are worried that their land is continually subjected to waterlogging and that animals can disappear if the water gets too high.

Another area of concern is the proximity of the flooding to two old Donegal County Council landfill dumps that are currently under rehabilitation. Maj9or progress has been made over the past number of years bringing these back from refuse site status but flooding seeping into them is not good. It has also caused angling groups to raise concerns in the past as the river could they feel be affected.

As one local landowner put it: "Every time we get a major rainfall event this turns into a floody hell, we need the council or the Department of Agriculture to take the bull by the horns and rectify this problem."