Tipperary County Council’s Severe Weather Assessment Team and Crisis Management Team convened this morning as a Status Orange Low Temperature/Ice warning remains in effect for Tipperary.
The Met Éireann warning for extremely cold weather with widespread severe frost, ice and lying snow remains in place.
Temperatures overnight dropped to as low as -8 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 icy conditions throughout the county.
A further Status Orange Low Temperature/Ice warning will come into effect for Tipperary at 7pm tonight until 8am tomorrow morning. A Status Yellow warning also remains in place until noon on Friday the 10th of January.
The Council is urging all road users to take extreme care if they must travel over the coming days. Conditions remain extremely challenging on many routes where lying snow continues to be an issue, particularly across the following areas extending from Dolla, Silvermines, Newport, Kilcommon, and Templederry.
Council crews are continuing to treat priority routes, however, due to the low temperatures, widespread icy patches can be expected even on treated roads, extreme caution is required on the following roads:-
- R690 Kearney’s Hill (Ballingarry/Mullinahone) impassable
- Griffin’s Cross to Templederry, Templederry to Curraba, Shalee to Caapparoe and Nenagh, Shallee to Kiloscully, Shalee to Ballinahinch, Kiloscully to Newport.
- L3220 Dukierin Road out of Templemore, L3211 Ragg to Templemore Road
- L2303 Moyglass-Coolbawn Cross
- L2107 Ballyigarry-Commons
- L2209 Lismalin Cross-Drangan
- L2301 Drangan-Killenaule
- L2204 Killenaule-Crohane
The treated routes across the county are currently taking over 4 hours to complete in the current conditions indicating the challenges being faced by the service teams. These routes are normally completed in 3 hours. Tipperary County Council has spread approximately 2,500 tonnes of salt in the past number of days. However, there is no issue with salt supplies for the winter programme and clearing works in the districts.
Tipperary County Council Winter Service crews will continue to prioritise the clearing and treatment of the planned winter maintenance salting routes.
Local District Council crews are focusing on clearing and treating:
- 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
- footpaths
- carparks
- outside schools and businesses
- housing estates
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.
The following is a list of office and service details today:-
Offices/Services: Unable to Open.
- Civic Amenity Site Donohill Tipperary
Offices/Services: Open/Available
- Clonmel Civic Offices
- Nenagh Civic Offices
- Thurles MD Offices
- Carrick-On-Suir MD Offices – open at 10am
- Tipperary Cahir Cashel MD Offices
- Nenagh Leisure Centre is open today, tomorrow and Friday from 11am to 6pm. There will be no swimming lessons and the front car park is closed, public to use the back car park.
- Museum, Clonmel 11.30am-1pm and 2pm-3.30pm
- Swimming Pool, Clonmel 10am – 6pm, no swimming/school lessons will take place.
- Sean Treacy Swimming Pool, Tipperary Town 10am – 6pm, no swimming/school lessons will take place.
Civic Amenity Sites
- Clonmel (Carrigeen Business Park),
- Cashel (Waller's-Lot, Clonmel Road),
- Roscrea (Dublin Road)
- Nenagh (Limerick Road)
All will open from 10am – 4.30pm with closure for lunch from 12.30 pm to 1pm.
Libraries - open
- Carrick-on-Suir Library
- Templemore Library
- Nenagh Library
- Roscrea Library
- Borrisokane Library
- Clonmel Library
- Cashel Library
- Thurles Library
- Tipperary Town Library
Tipperary County Council’s Housing Maintenance team is continuing to respond to customer issues in relation to council housing stock, particularly emergency issues relating to electrical, heating, and plumbing issues.
A cold-weather initiative is also in place in relation to Homelessness Services. The initiative is a multi-agency protocol to address the needs of persons sleeping rough throughout the winter months, and especially during extreme weather events.
The situation will continue to monitored during the current weather and priority will be given to street homeless during this period.
Our Civil Defence teams continue to assist in the transfer of essential staff to the Hospital in Clonmel and patient transfer where possible.
Tipperary County Council’s Customer Services line remains open on 0818 06 5000 up to 4pm and our Emergency Line out of hours will be available after 4pm on 0818 06 5003 to report any issues.
We will continue to post updates on our website/social media platforms so check back for further updates - www.tipperarycoco.ie
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
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 work until the end of this cold snap later this week.
Tipperary County Council would like to thank and acknowledge the tremendous work done and being done by our farming community, private contractors, community groups and other volunteer group who provided help into our community.
We would urge the public not to become complacent regarding road and travel conditions as the thaw approaches over the weekend.
A full list of priority road treatment routes is available here:
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
