"When I hear rain I just pray to God it will stop"

Torrential rain, rising water levels in the Shannon and flooding in Dublin and along the east coast have heightened fears among local people who saw their homes flooded two years ago. Despite fears from local people and the heavy rain, Westmeath County Council has moved to assure people that water levels in the Shannon are over a metre lower than they were at their peak in November 2009. the levels this week are just half a metre lower than the average level in 2009. Director of Services for the Athlone area of Westmeath County Council Barry Kehoe said: "As of Monday at 2.30pm the level in Lough Ree was 38.3m O.D. (meaning metres above the reference point used, which in this case is Poolbeg). At its peak in 2009 it was at 39.67m O.D. so that's 1.37m of a difference." However, figures obtained by the Westmeath Independent previously show that the average level during the month of November 2009 was 38.88m O.D. - a measurement that is just half a metre lower than the average for November 2009, when scores of people were forced to leave their homes after severe flooding. Figures from the council and assurances that we are a long way off from 2009 levels are of cold comfort to those who had to leave their homes two years ago. One woman, who was out of her home for 14 months following the flood, has lashed out at the council this week, saying they are not doing anything for her or any of the other people in the firing line. Veronica Keenan, who has lived at The Park for 23 years, said she is living in fear that her home will flood once more and told the Westmeath Independent yesterday (Tuesday) morning: "It's frightening to see how the water rose overnight." Speaking to this paper on Monday evening Veronica said: "If it happens again I'll have to walk away." She is terrified that the water will once again reach her house, which she has just completed refurbishing, but is also angry at the council for not doing anything for residents in the area. "I'm awake since five o'clock this morning," said Veronica at her home on Monday as the rain continued to pour down outside. She slammed the council for its inaction, saying it is making no provisions at all for the homes that are in the firing line, with The Meadows and the fields on the Clonown Road flooded already. "We always had flooding practically every year on the road, but it's getting worse every year," said Veronica, who added that the council could do things such as clean up the canal and empty the drains in the area of leaves. "I got onto the council in the summer when it was particularly dry to take the rubbish out of the canal. They wouldn't do it so I got onto Tidy Towns and they did a bit," she said, while adding that the part of the canal that is filled in should be reopened. "They (the council) are doing nothing. There are no provisions to do anything," said a clearly frustrated Veronica. "I'm still having nightmares two years down the line. When I hear rain I just pray to God it will stop." See Westmeath Independent print edition for full story