"It came out of nowhere" - woman recalls terrifying speed of Raphoe flood

Sandbags and piles of debris are the only signs left of the deluge that swept through Raphoe on Saturday evening. 

By Sunday afternoon, there is a palpable sense of relief - that the rain had stopped, and for many, that it was business as usual after the previous evening's frantic clear up.

At the town's Diamond, local people were coming and going, picking sandbags from the temporary depot and checking in with each other.

"Were you flooded?" they asked.

"How's your road?"

"Do you need help?"

And the answers? A lot of shops and homes were flooded. The roads took a big hit, as could be seen from the chunks of asphalt in the piles of debris. And for most people, it seemed that there was plenty of help at hand.

One woman who preferred not to be named described the moment the water began to seep through her door.

"I'd been out in the yard with the dog a few minutes earlier and there were a few puddles but nothing really that would make you think 'Oh God, this doesn't look good.'

"And then I was back in watching the telly and the dog started barking and I went out into the kitchen and the water was coming through the back door so I threw down a few tea towels to try and stop it but it kept coming and coming. 

"It was like it came out of nowhere, from a few puddles to water everywhere you looked. I don't mind admitting that I was quite scared, actually. We didn't know when it was going to stop; we didn't know if there was a danger of us being electrocuted. All kinds of things go through your head." 

When asked if there was much damage to their home, her husband replied: "Ach, a bit. But  nothing that can't be fixed. There's people that have a lot worse to deal with." 

A number of businesses around the Diamond were affected by the flooding,. Staff, family members, neighbours and the fire service put in a Trojan effort to get the water out as quickly as possible. People are in shock, but there is a definite feeling of solidarity.

As the clean up continues and the damage is being assessed, questions are being asked about why this happened. And what will be done to prevent it happening again?