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Belfast Live
Belfast Live
National
Jane Corscadden

Northern Ireland weather: Flooding in Derry and Strabane amid Met Office yellow warning for rain

Flooding has been reported in parts of Derry and Strabane on Saturday night.

It comes after the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for heavy rain, which is currently in place until 11pm. The heaviest bouts of rain are expected to be in northern and western areas of Northern Ireland.

The weather forecaster said the “flooding of a few homes and businesses is possible,” and that bus and train services will “probably” be affected with some journey times taking longer.

Read more: Yellow weather warning for heavy rain in place across NI

Spray and flooding on roads were also likely to make journey times longer, while some interruption to power supplies and other services is possible.

In Derry, flooding has been reported in a number of areas including the Strand Road and Foyle Road.

Foyle MLA Pádraig Delargey shared a video showing a car struggling to drive through flood water in the area.

He said: "Flooding along a number of sections of Foyle Road, Letterkenny Road and Duncreggan, several man holes up - passable with care."

Events at the Foyle Maritime Festival in Derry were cancelled on Saturday evening for the health and safety of visitors and staff. The festival is due to reopen on Sunday at 12 noon.

The Western Health Trust said the Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry was affected by heavy rain, and had to temporarily close some sections of the Emergency Department.

Due to the reduction in space, it had to resort to accepting emergency attendances only on Saturday evening.

Posting an update on social media, Foyle councillor Ryan McCready called on the local community to support each other.

He said: "The flooding is very bad around the city, check on your neighbours etc if they need help. Let’s pull together and let’s find some sandbags and help each other as much as we can.”

In Strabane, a video posted on social media shows extreme flooding at Joe's Bar. It shows staff at the Market Street venue attempting to clear flood water from the building.

Supervalu on Strabane's Main Street announced it would be opening at the later time of 1pm on Sunday due to flooding in the area.

The police warned of flooding in the Derry and Strabane areas this evening, and in a statement asked drivers to be cautious if travelling.

They said: "Drivers are warned of hazardous driving conditions due to flooding in the Derry / Londonderry and Strabane areas.

"If you are travelling on the roads in the area please take extreme caution, slow down and think about whether or not your journey is essential."

To report flooding, you can contact NI Water on 0300 2000 100.

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