Tipp overnight temperatures drop to minus 5
Tipperary County Council’s Severe Weather Action Team and our Crisis Management Team met this morning to discuss impacts and actions in response to the current and ongoing snow and icy condition.
Temperatures overnight dropped to as low as -5 across some areas of the county. This has caused further and ongoing difficult road conditions across many areas. Some treacherous driving conditions exist in area with widespread icy conditions throughout the county. The Council is advising the public not to travel unless it is absolutely necessary.
A number of Regional routes remain blocked including:
R448 Vee Road from Clogheen to Lismore.
R503 Newport to Milestone.
In addition, local routes remain very difficult and blocked in place – particularly on higher ground.
All 12 of our Winter Service routes north and south were treated on an ongoing basis yesterday and overnight commencing at 2am and again this morning commencing at 9.30am
Conditions on these routes remain challenging with areas west of Tipperary Town around Emly, Lattin and Kilross noted as particularly challenging by the winter service drivers.
The treated routes across the county are currently taking over 4/4.5 hours to complete in the current conditions indicating the challenges being faced by the service teams. These routes are normally complete in 3 hours.
Tipperary County Council Winter Service crews will continue to prioritise the clearing and treatment of the planned winter maintenance salting routes.
At 8pm this evening Tipperary will enter a Orange Warning for Low Temperature/Ice. This warning will remain in place until Wednesday at 10am but further Low Temperature/Ice warning will be in place until Friday morning and road condition will remain very poor through this period.
If your journey is essential, please slow down, drive with caution, and be aware of other road users. Allow extra time for your journey. If a road has been treated by a gritter or snowplough, do not assume that the road is safe to travel. There may still be underlying snow or ice which would make the road hazardous.
Local District Council crews are currently focusing on clearing and treating:
town centres footpaths
town centre carparks
areas to help in resumption of provision of public services and public transport services
clearing of route to assistance in provision of health services
assistance of health service staff
Pedestrians are advised to take extra care. Where snow has fallen, or where there is a risk of lingering ice, do not venture out unless it is absolutely necessary and to avoid walking on the road if paths are not yet cleared. This has caused some issues in respect to road safety.
Clearing of local routes has proved difficult in many areas and will take time to progress as other works take priority
Clearing of routes and paths in urban residential areas has not generally been possible to date with some exceptions where a particular road safety issue arose.
Our Civil Defence teams in Clonmel are assisting in the transfer of essential staff to the Hospital in Clonmel and patient transfer where possible.
Tipperary County Fire Service responded to 60 calls since 9am on Sunday, most of which were weather-related incidents and are continuing to provide this service where required.
All Swimming Pools will be closed all day today.
The Council offices remain open up to 4 pm, however members of the public should utilise our online services and Customer Services contact number in the first instance rather than visit our offices in person owing to the treacherous icy conditions.
The online motor tax facility www.motortax.ie is available and postal applications can be sent to: Motor Tax Office, Tipperary County Council, Civic Offices, Limerick Road, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary E45 AO99 or Motor Tax Office, Old Town Hall, Parnell Street, Clonmel, Co Tipperary E91 XH99
The Council’s Customer Services Line remains open on 0818 06 5000 up to 4pm to report any issues and our emergency services out of hours line will be available after 4pm on 0818 06 5003.
Key Public Safety Messages:
Driving conditions will be hazardous, even where roads are gritted, slow down, drive with caution, be aware of other road users and allow extra time for your journey.
Drivers travelling longer journeys are advised to be aware of conditions right along their route, as the weather may vary significantly across different parts of the country.
Public transport may also be affected by this spell of wintry weather, so I’d advise people to check with service operators for the latest updates in their area.
Take extra care while walking: footpaths etc. can be extremely hazardous/slippery due to ice
Check on elderly, vulnerable and isolated neighbours
Keep your phone charged and take it with you on all journeys. In an emergency dial 999 or 112
People are advised to prepare for this period of severe weather including ensuring their mobile phone is fully charged to enable communication.
Monitor Met Éireann forecasts and/or visit https://www.met.ie/ for the most up to date information. Information is available across social media platforms and other news media sources.
Tipperary County Council out of hours emergency contact number 0818 06 5003 for roads and housing (emergency electrical and plumbing issues only).
ESB Emergency Services can be contacted at 1800 372 999. The public can monitor www.PowerCheck.ie.
Uisce Éireann Customers can check their website and social media channels for updates and to get in touch with any issues or concerns via our 24/7 customer care centre at 1800 278 278. People can also sign up online to free text alert system to get regular updates about their local supplies – see www.water.ie.
People are advised to conserve water, and visit https://www.water.ie for advice
All disruptions to HSE services are on the HSE homepage and on HSE social media channels https://www.hse.ie
We apologise to any members of the public in areas that we have not been able to progress clearing works as yet. All available resources are engaged in the clearing work and will remain engaged in this works until the end of this cold snap later this week.