Storm Ophelia - General Discussion/Local reports - See MOD NOTE Post #1

Samaris

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'Scuse me if I'm breaking any rules of Weather here with another thread, but didn't want to derail the main thread with too much chatter.

Guessing a lot of people (particularly us mostly-lurkers) might be in the same boat as me - not really sure what this all means on the ground in terms of preparation - and even if it's not too awful, I for one would prefer to be over-prepared rather than under-prepared! (At the moment, I don't feel that prepared at all!)


I'm living in a pretty exposed place for this particular set of indicators (on a narrow, south-west jutting peninsula off the Galway coast) and thus somewhat nervous about it. We're moving the bedroom to the sitting room as I've always been a bit dubious about the tall trees on that side of the house, but apart from that, sheltering the car (somehow) and ensuring there's as little potential debris as possible, I'm a bit at a loss. Water, candles might be an idea to get in.

Any more experienced people have ideas? Or what are others in the firing line doing?

lottpaul

We are right in the path of the storm here in west Kerry. We always have a supply of candles, a camping stove and a few extra gas canisters, just in case, and make sure all of the phones, ipads etc are fully charged. Batteries for radio or torches too. If you have a water supply that needs a pump then you'll want some bottled water too. Other than that, just make sure there's nothing loose lying around outside, lock shed doors, lock the gates or tie some wire etc around it to stop it blowing open. Local radio is always a better source of info than RTE for updates on road closures etc.
Keep away from the shore - it might look exciting but it's too dangerous. Keep travel to a minimum.

Irish Steve

The following is not essentials but gives some ideas on what may be appropriate if you are in a vulnerable area at risk of losing power for any period of time.

Make sure that the vehicles are not low on fuel, it could be several days before you can top up if there is significant damage to the ESB distribution network, and have some cash about the place, if the power is out over a wide area, things like credit and debit cards won't be usable, so topping up on supplies may not be possible in the same way, while larger supermarkets tend to have backup generators because of the fridges, there's no certainty that things like broadband won't be disrupted if the outages cover a wide enough area.

If you have an outdoor oil storage tank and there's not a lot of oil in it, the non standard direction of this storm may mean it gets moved (or worse), so tying it down or similar might not be a bad idea.

If you are single fuel (electric) for cooking, try and make sure you have snack type things that don't need heating, as if the electric is out, that means no cooking or water heating capability, so even things like cup soups are not going to be possible.

If your water comes via a pump, some reserve stock of bottled water is a good idea.

For safety, torches with reserve batteries are safer than candles.

A battery operated radio may be appropriate in order to keep up to date with news and weather information. A car radio is a viable option here, just to make sure that people are aware of the alternatives.

Try to ensure that mobile phone batteries are topped up before Monday, and if the power is out over a wide area for any length of time, turn the phone off to save the battery, if the network goes down, the phone will increase power usage to try and find an alternate connection, which it may not be able to do.

If you have bottled gas, make sure that your cylinder is not too low, as it will be providing a lot more than usual if the electric is out, and if a gas hob, a kettle that can be heated on gas is better (safer) than a saucepan for boiling water for things like drinks or soup. If a gas hob, make sure you have matches or a lighter, as if electric is out, the spark ignition on a gas hob probably won't work.

If you take prescription drugs on a regular basis, make sure that you won't run out over the next few days, while you may be able to get to the pharmacist, if phones and power are out for any length of time, they may not be able to get stock in for a few days.

If you are gas or oil heating, and have an open fire option, it might be worth getting some coal or peat in, just in case of power being out, as nether oil or gas heating will work without power.

Any or all of the above may not be necessary, it's going to be very much dependent on how much infrastructure is affected, and how wide an area is damaged, and yes, some of the items above may be seen as overkill or alarmist, what I've tried to do is mention things that people may not otherwise think of until it's too late to do anything about them.

MJohnston

I'm in Dublin, so not expecting anything too bad but the main things I'm keeping in mind are that (a) the electricity going out is the most likely impact for most of the country (b) debris from roof tiles and bins will be a problem no matter how strong (c) don't trust trees.

1. Make sure batteries for torches are fully charged, and that there are some spares around. I have a windup torch as well which is a great bit of kit to have.
2. Get some candles and matches/lighters for them.
3. We have some Britta jugs that I'll make sure are filled, and I'll probably pick up a couple of big bottles just to be sure (I'm extremely unconcerned about running out of water, but it's not perishable and not expensive so I don't mind).
4. Moving all garden furniture and loose garden items into our back office shed, including bikes (we have a big tree hanging above said office shed, but there's not much I can do about that at this stage, at least it is in a spot where it won't threaten the main house at all)
5. We have a gas oven, so I'm not worried about food, but I will need the matches/lighters above because the sparking mechanism runs on electric.
6. I'll make sure there are some cooked snacks in the fridge just in case (we have a toddler so we could do without food ourselves but he'll complain!)
7. I'll do my weekly shop tomorrow, but I'm going to avoid buying too much fridge food and any frozen food, again just in case.
8. Minor thing, but I'm going to chain lock our front gate closed in case it decides to start waving about, which would hit the cars.
9. Charging all our portable phone chargers, I have a nice Anker one with 6-7 full charges worth of battery for phones, I could easily charge them in the car if all else fails, but it's nice to not have to go outside!
10. Keeping laptops and tablets fully charged, no point in letting an electricity outage stop me from doing a bit of online work, I can use my phone as a wifi hotspot.
11. Picking out a nice book to read just in case!

I'll also be checking in with our elderly neighbours if the power goes out, and I'll have spares of most of the above just in case they need something.

If power does go out, the good thing is it's a fairly mild time of year so heating shouldn't be an issue.

We also don't need to worry about kids going to school, but for some people that will be a big consideration, especially if they normally go to work when the kids are at school.

Additionally, I freelance from home and my wife has a job that lets her occasionally work from home, so I think we'll both make sure we don't need to travel anywhere on Monday.

The final thing I would say is - some people will say this is taking it far too seriously or that I'm overhyping things. But the fact is that nothing I have prepared with or bought to prepare is perishable or has a limited shelf-life, and will undoubtedly come in useful at some point in the future if this storm isn't so bad. The precautions I'm taking are extremely minor, and will not affect my life in any great way at all. I take this approach - if I didn't take any of these minor precautions and the storm turned out to be bad, it would at best be a really stressful situation, at worst it could be life-threatening for some. If I do take these steps, and the storm turns out to be nothing at all, I still have these supplies for any future storm or situation that is dangerous, and I am not out of pocket in any way. Personally I think it's a no-brainer to take minor steps like this, and if people think you're silly for doing it, tell them to just go and do it their own way.

Doltanian

I am taking down my 1 metre satellite dish tomorrow from the side of the house and i'll store it in my garage, I use it for RTE Saorsat, this has the potential to rip the blocks out of the wall it is mounted on. I will let my Sky dish up as it is a perforated mesh with a smaller footprint. I will fill barrels of water in my timber garden shed to add one tonne of ballast to hold it down. All Kerry flags have been brought indoors until next summer.

Call me Al

Does anyone have an indication as to how long this event is to last?
Are flights expected to be delayed substantially through DUB?
We are scheduled to land @5.30pm with Ryanair and I'm hopeful that this a fast moving event and that it will pass over within a few hours.

Am I deluding myself :-)

Widdershins

Is it necessary to tape the windows? Worried about the roof

MJohnston

Call me Al wrote: »

Does anyone have an indication as to how long this event is to last?
Are flights expected to be delayed substantially through DUB?
We are scheduled to land @5.30pm with Ryanair and I'm hopeful that this a fast moving event and that it will pass over within a few hours.

Am I deluding myself :-)

Monday at 5:30? If so, I gave someone else this advice earlier in the thread, but find a hotel near the airport you're supposed to be leaving from, one that allows last minute cancellations, and book it now.

I don't know about flights in general, but I'd imagine Ryanair will cancel any flights at the drop of the hat (especially in their current situation) and this has high enough probability of disrupting DUB operations around the Monday 5:30 timeframe.

Pwindedd

I'm not going too mad. Just make sure all the devices are charged. Put the wheelie bins flat on their sides against the wall in garden. Fill a bucket or two with water Sunday night. Not sure what to do about car though. I can put it on my drive but it's close to house so if rooftiles start flying off it might be worse than if I left it out in the street which is away from houses but then you've got wheelie bins and rogue trampolines to worry about. It's a rental property and I'm not sure how good my roof is. Massive tree in front garden too. Hopefully it stays put.

Monkeynut

Call me Al wrote: »

Does anyone have an indication as to how long this event is to last?
Are flights expected to be delayed substantially through DUB?
We are scheduled to land @5.30pm with Ryanair and I'm hopeful that this a fast moving event and that it will pass over within a few hours.

Am I deluding myself :-)

yes, but not because of the storm

Samaris

I might have a word with our neighbour in the shop and see if any of our neighbours might need someone looking in on them after it's passed/getting anything in. Houses are a bit isolated in this region.

Thanks for the advice!

JCX BXC

In West Clare, in a fairly exposed area, had a bit of free time so cleared up stuff loose stuff around the house, will be taking in the weather station tomorrow to prevent it from damage (I'm not confident of its current setup).

Besides that it's mainly candles and food that doesn't need to be heated to be edible. Nothing to cook on here if the power goes.

I don't think there's any massive preparation to take place, unless you're in an area that's more at risk than others. Common sense is all that's needed!

Harry Palmr

Widdershins wrote: »

Is it necessary to tape the windows? Worried about the roof

For what? Flying debris? Only if there is a lot of loose stuff that might fly about - it's better to clean up stuff before the storm than after.

JCX BXC

In terms of flying, I've said it and I said it again, we won't really know until Sunday evening at the earliest when TAF's come out. It all depends on wind direction and strength combined.

Airlines generally don't cancel all their flights in Ireland in advance of a storm (except Aer Lingus Regional) however it must be respected that this storm is a little stronger than we're used to. Nothing will be cancelled until airlines are somewhat sure of not being able to.operate in those conditions.

Looking from this far out, I'd say chances of flying from or landing into any ROI airport between 3pm-6pm are slim, however that's by no means guarenteed.

horsefarm

touts wrote: »

My local tesco has moved bottled water to beside the tills and has two pallets of 5l bottles dropped in the middle of the soft drinks section.

That sort of thing is probably why RTE is hesitating to issue a warning.

If I have a powercut I cant pump water from my well. So l cant even flush a toilet. Probably thousands of others in the same situation. Do you have an issue with people wanting to be prepared for a possible prolonged powercut?

Den Creed

Should I clean the storm drains lads?

star gazer

Check for updates regularly from Met Eireann and your local council, make sure phone/device is charged and you have a battery radio that can last. Be ready in your mind of what power cuts will mean if the tree knocks out the local power lines and an event like this keeps work crews busy with other areas for more than a day or two.

MJohnston

Den Creed wrote: »

Should I clean the storm drains lads?

It would help if people stated their locations in these types of posts as conditions will vary a lot around the island, but - probably not, there isn’t expected to be an extreme amount of rain with this storm overland, most of it will be in the western quadrants of the system, which is currently looking like it will out over the sea. Storm surges might be a problem in southern coastal areas though, as MTC mentioned before.

Harry Palmr

Batteries for torch, radio, phone. Obviously you might need to think about cold food meals for a day or two in worst hit areas or eating out/takaways.

PLL

Be sure to check everything. We had a rusty old satellite dish that fell off the side of the house a few weeks ago. If it had been subject to these forecasted winds it could easily have blown over the wall and hit a neighbours window. So be sure to check even the most stupid of things.
Are people staying indoors Monday? I'm in Galway myself.

Doltanian

A baby boom in July 2018 after this, especially if there is long periods of electricity outages.

My name is URL

LaVail wrote: »

Thanks! Have hospital appointment in CUH Monday morning and it's a 200 mile round trip for me. Wouldn't be back in Kerry until around 3pm Not sure as to what I should do now.

I think the general advice will be not to make any non-essential journeys. Personally, unless the appointment was very important I wouldn't be driving 200 miles for it, especially in areas with a red warning.

Irish Steve

Harry Palmr wrote: »

Batteries for torch, radio, phone. Obviously you might need to think about cold food meals for a day or two in worst hit areas or eating out/takaways.

If the power is out over a wide area, you think this will be a possible? During the day maybe, once it gets dark, there's a real issue from a health and safety aspect of operating a kitchen that may not have many windows with no power! Add to that the problems that will happen with orders and deliveries, especially if there are significant numbers of trees down on roads, blocking them, there's not usually significant reserve stocks in most places these days, and if there's no power, so no fridges or freezers, what stock they do have won't be lasting too long.

cdsb46

Discodog wrote: »

I think that power cuts could be the biggest problem.

Candles, torches, battery packs and water at the ready, live in a apt block, last time the power went out we lost the water too

Virtanen

Living in Kilkenny. We should be good on all other resources from things lying around the house (candles, gas cooker, etc.), but we''ll definitely be stock-piling cartons of water, just in case

Have a couple of flask with hot water and soup. Wrap them in a towel.

Check on elderly neighbours tomorrow and see if they need anything.

crossmolinalad

horsefarm wrote: »

If I have a powercut I cant pump water from my well. So l cant even flush a toilet. Probably thousands of others in the same situation. Do you have an issue with people wanting to be prepared for a possible prolonged powercut?

We have a generator for it can connect it in minutes to the house
Having power for the most Important things like the pump of the backboiler , waterpump , kettle , radio, tv, computer (keeps us updated) and some light in the house
Switch off the mains with a powercut at the consumer unit , take a cable with two plugs on it , one in a socket in the house other one in the generator works perfect
Done it earlier by powercuts

Spanish Eyes

Stupid question, please indulge me.

If the electricity goes, so does the broadband, so desktops and tablets won't work. 4g probably will work on phones, so that is the important thing to keep charged with a power pack back up. That's right isn't it, re the broadband?

Battery operated radio is good too. I have two little Bush personal radios that work off AA batteries, were a godsend in another time. Rooted them out, still working!

As others have said, don't get too worried (but I am so scared, will be here on my own at the time yikes!), but keep extra water and food that can be eaten cold. And a bottle of whisky and plenty of vino lol!

Best of luck everyone, especially those in the eye of the storm, although at the moment it looks like very few places will escape unscathed.

Den Creed

MJohnston wrote: »

It would help if people stated their locations in these types of posts as conditions will vary a lot around the island, but - probably not, there isn’t expected to be an extreme amount of rain with this storm overland, most of it will be in the western quadrants of the system, which is currently looking like it will out over the sea. Storm surges might be a problem in southern coastal areas though, as MTC mentioned before.

Sorry, East Kerry region

irishgeo

Tie down trampolines would be a good bet. Also it's supposed to hit early Monday. Meaning any powercuts should be at least be negated by the fact it's still bright outside.

philstar

Ophelia ? what sort of name is that anyway? sounds like a protestant name :mad:

MJohnston

philstar wrote: »

Ophelia ? what sort of name is that anyway? sounds like a protestant name :mad:

Not sure if you’re serious or not, but to maintain some semblence of being on topic, the name comes from the North American naming system, and has nothing to do with our joint Met Eireann/Met Office naming system. It is convention that storms already with one of those names don’t get renamed by us.

philstar

^^^^^^^^^^^^

sorry, i was having a father ted moment

Doltanian

philstar wrote: »

^^^^^^^^^^^^

sorry, i was having a father ted moment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpFfXWr_gRo

noble00

Hi sorry for jumping in , I'm in the south surely if it's going to be this bad , all schools and business should close , I'm a bit worried about having to work Monday and leaving kids

antodeco

Just something to be aware of. Mobile signal may stop if the weather is very bad. Landlines can be more resilient. If you've any family members you are worried about, make sure you know each others landlines if you know them (and have them!).

If you don't have a gas cooker and electricity dies, you can use a barbeque if you have one, but please ONLY outside!

If you plan on leaving the house for the day/night, please be conscious of your alarm that's it not ringing all the time!

Make sure side gates are properly locked and strengthened up from opening.

fraxinus1

County councils are still not being put on alert. Sunday is an even worse day to contact people in charge.

Lia_lia

I’m driving down to Kerry to visit the family tomorrow morning. Was going to stay the night and drive back to Cork Monday morning (don’t start work till 11) but won’t be doing that anymore I’d say. Will surely be grand tomorrow?

Widdershins

Are people going to work on Monday? It's hard to imagine what it's going to be like.

__..__

Ha ha. I just got a text from work telling us all we better be in Monday or else.

RoisinClare6

fraxinus1 wrote: »

County councils are still not being put on alert. Sunday is an even worse day to contact people in charge.

Carlow has been since yesterday apparently...they're on stand by and getting precautions in place as needed

leahyl

Just got this text from UCC

“Dear all, as you may be aware a red weather alert has been issued by Met Eireann this afternoon, Please be aware that the University Emergency Management Team are
monitoring the situation and further information will follow tomorrow.
Regards
Corporate Secretary and Chair of the Emergency Management Team”

Cloudio9

fraxinus1 wrote: »

County councils are still not being put on alert. Sunday is an even worse day to contact people in charge.

i've received an SMS alert from Fingal co co today

dashoonage

The mother said they put an auld sandbag or two out on Limerick yesterday...

Samaris

Widdershins wrote: »

Are people going to work on Monday? It's hard to imagine what it's going to be like.

I will be, but work is only about 2km from me so not too bad. More concerned about workmates that have a long trip in and out. I hope someone has the sense to make the call in sending them home early if it looks necessary.

Cantona's Collars

fraxinus1 wrote: »

County councils are still not being put on alert. Sunday is an even worse day to contact people in charge.

Spoke to a couple of employees,they know as much as any Joe or Josephine soap about what's on the way.I guess by now most of their time will be spent on clean up duties on Tuesday.

Cloudio9

__..__ wrote: »

Ha ha. I just got a text from work telling us all we better be in Monday or else.

A damning piece of evidence if someone gets hurt.

Doltanian

I have a backup inverter and will use a charged car batter to power it, it can power my EIR modem for internet providing the phone lines are ok. It will also be able to run my smaller TV for news reports etc. The Telephone exchanges and Mast towers all have huge battery banks of lead acid batteries.

__..__

Cloudio9 wrote: »

A damning piece of evidence if someone gets hurt.

Somehow I don't see them getting punished if someone gets hurt. Typical bullies.

Th3B1tcH

A cheap landline phone you plug straight to wall may come in handy if power goes down (modem will be useless if no power to it) I've more fate in landline staying then mobiles.
I'm not overworried but no need take stupid risks, supplies in for simple meals if power goes.

ps. there'll be great drying so make sure u've plenty of pegs

natty_asha

fraxinus1 wrote: »

County councils are still not being put on alert. Sunday is an even worse day to contact people in charge.

I received a text alert from Carlow County council about half an hour ago advising orange weather alert for area Monday.