HAVE YOU EVER left the house without your umbrella only to find that it’s lashing rain?

The arrival of Storm Chandra to Irish shores this week was a bit like that, only instead of ‘your umbrella’ it was ‘any kind of working flood defence system’, and instead of getting your hair wet, the result was that multiple homes and businesses got completely destroyed. 

20,000 homes were left without power, while in Enniscorthy, 40 homes were severely damaged after the Wexford town was submerged by the floods. 

In the aftermath of the storm, Minister for Housing James Browne pointed the finger at Met Éireann for failing to issue a weather warning for Dublin ahead of the flooding, which, yes, would have been an idea. It is plausible, if not likely, that had a significant rain warning been issued for Dublin, then homes and businesses would have been able to take some steps to mitigate the damage that would soon come their way.

Met Éireann, for their part, have attributed the flooding partly to conditions before the storm and the amount of rain that had fallen in the days leading up to Chandra’s arrival — arguing that the warning system is to alert as to the immediate conditions, rather than their impact in conjunction with pre-existing conditions. Though, when the pre-existing conditions are just… more weather, it’s not exactly obvious that this rationale is a prudent one.

However, the real preventative measures, such as proper drainage, the installation of flood walls, and of course, working towards meaningful action on climate change, are all under the purview of Minister Browne’s government — as is coordination with Met Éireann to ensure that what needs to be communicated to the public is being communicated to the public. 

That’s not to blame the government for the weather, tempting though that may be. It is simply to acknowledge that the effects of climate change will only get closer to our doorsteps with each passing year, in the least metaphorical way possible, and that we are already up to our necks in terms of how far behind we are in addressing this problem (‘up to our necks’ is........

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