Power won't be restored to many Longford homes until Tuesday or Wednesday in wake of Storm Darragh

Approximately 55,000 homes, farms and businesses remain without power following extremely strong and gusty winds associated with Storm Darragh which caused widespread and extensive damage to the electricity network across the country.

As of 5pm on Sunday, ESB Networks teams have restored power to 340,000 customers impacted by Storm Darragh.

The impact is nationwide but some of the most affected areas are in the North West, Midlands and South East.

PICTURES | Dramatic photos as Storm Darragh bares his teeth knocking trees in Longford and cutting power supply

In Longford, crews are addressing a number of faults, and in many instances the predicted restoration of power is by Tuesday and Wednesday of this week;

* a fault in Ballymahon (Cloncullen Road 15 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 8pm tonight, December 8)

* a fault in Ballymahon (near Abbeyderg 27 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 8pm on Tuesday, December 10)

* a fault at Clonfower, Aghamore (455 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Wednesday, December 11)

* outage at Aghamore (Killashee - 27 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Monday, December 9)

* outage at Aghamore (Ballycore / Begnagh - 85 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Wednesday, December 11)

* a fault at Aghamore (14 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Tuesday, December 10)

* a fault at Aghamore (near Cloontuskert National School 78 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 6pm on Wednesday, December 11)

*a fault at Longford (2,402 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Tuesday, December 10)

* a fault at Ballymacormack, Longford (15 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Monday, December 9)

* a fault near White Linen Woods, Longford (42 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Sunday, December 8)

* a fault near Lisnamuck, Longford (46 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Sunday, December 8)

* a fault near Knockmartin, Longford (61 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 8pm on Tuesday, December 10)

* a fault near Bawn, Longford (82 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Monday, December 9)

* a fault near Bawn, Longford (27 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 8pm on Tuesday, December 10)

* a fault near Oghil, Longford (10 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Monday, December 9)

* a fault near Moat Farrell, Longford (72 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 8pm on Tuesday, December 10)

* a fault near Edenmore (Gaigue), Longford (120 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 10pm on Sunday, December 8)

* a fault near Smear, Longford (10 customers are affected and power is expected to be restored by 7pm on Tuesday, December 10)

Also read: Storm Darragh has caused widespread disruption to broadband services in Longford

Storm Darragh is similar in impact to Storm Ophelia in 2017, which left 385,000 customers without power at the peak but with more widespread impact across the country.

All ESB Networks crews, with extensive support from partner contractors, will continue working into this evening and tonight to safely restore power to as many customers as possible in challenging conditions.

Furthermore, crews from French counterparts Enedis are sailing overnight and will arrive tomorrow to assist with power restoration in the worst impacted areas. There is longstanding cooperation in place with electricity network operators in Ireland, the UK and France in providing such support. 

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The majority of customers impacted by Storm Darragh have had their power restored but significant numbers will be without supply for a number of days. Due to the severity and significant scale of the damage some customers could be without power for approximately a week. Assessment of the extent of damage is continuing.

It is important that any impacted customers who use electrically powered medical devices contact their healthcare professional to make alternative arrangements if necessary.

Given the scale of the damage and the dynamic nature of the event, we will continue to update estimated restoration times for customers and we will update www.PowerCheck.ie as information is confirmed. We advise customers to sign up for our “Keep me Updated” service for power outages on www.PowerCheck.ie to receive status updates directly. Our Customer Contact Centre Agents will be supporting customers throughout Storm Darragh but will not be in a position to provide outage information until the network assessment has been fully conducted which is still ongoing in some of the worst affected areas.

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We acknowledge the disruption to family and commercial life this causes, and thank customers across the country, especially those who will again remain without power overnight, for their patience as our crews work to safely restore power.

An Important Public Safety Message: If you come across fallen wires or damaged electricity network, never, ever touch or approach these as they are LIVE and extremely dangerous. Please report any damage to electricity infrastructure by calling 1800 372 999.