Louth County Council continues to monitor weather situation

LCC continues to monitor weather situation

Louth County Council continues to monitor the situation regarding the multi-weather hazard event which has gripped the country.

Over the past week, representatives from Louth County Council's Severe Weather Action Team attended national briefings while preparations were made locally in advance of the cold snap.

Although Louth managed to avoid heavy snowfall at the weekend, Louth County Council’s Winter Service Plan remains fully operational and prepared to respond to winter weather conditions on the principal road network within the county.

Central to the Winter Service Plan is the precautionary treatment of approximately 450km of National and Regional roads to ensure that the main road network is kept free of frost, ice, and snow, as far as reasonably practicable. Snowploughs were, and remain, on standby for deployment in the event of significant snowfall.

Winter gritting has been carried out nightly on the county’s six Winter Maintenance routes, with double runs each night since Wednesday, January 1st. This includes 16 runs completed to date, covering a total of 7,500 km of salted roads, to ensure safe road conditions for motorists.

A significant volume of resources has been deployed during the cold snap, including:

• 850 tonnes of salt used to date.
• 290,000 litres of brine applied to enhance road treatment efficacy.
• Heaviest salt spreading rates of up to 40g per square meter used on roads during the most severe conditions, with nearly all runs requiring heavier applications since the first of January.

Motorists are reminded that even where roads are gritted, driving conditions can remain hazardous. Drivers should proceed with caution, remain aware of other road users, and allow extra time for their journeys.

In addition to road gritting, Louth County Council crews have treated footpaths and plazas in the centres of Ardee, Drogheda, and Dundalk to facilitate safe pedestrian movement in these urban areas.

The Council’s Housing Maintenance team is responding to customer issues in council housing stock, focusing on emergency repairs related to electrical, heating, and plumbing systems.

A cold-weather initiative is also in place for Homelessness Services, which involves a multi-agency protocol to address the needs of rough sleepers during extreme weather events.

Louth County Council crews have been actively responding to community needs, including the rescue of a horse that was loose on Bridge Street, Dundalk, on Saturday night. The horse was safely taken to the Town Hall and successfully reunited with its owner.

A Status Yellow low temperature/ice warning for Ireland remains in place until 10am on Friday, January 10th.

Further updates can be found on the Louth County Council X/Twitter page: @LouthCoCo