Floods in Dublin

The Botanic gardens just about escaped the sudden and dramatic increase in volume of the Tolka yesterday evening. Probably the craziest experience I've had in the 6 years I've lived in Dublin, right after roaming obliviously into town during the riots on O'Connell St a few years ago in my orange scarf and hat.

I innocently ventured into town at about 4pm to get some housey bits along with a giant food shop with the intention of getting it all home via taxi. Dark sky noted as I entered the Jervis, large numbers of wet people noted also as I went about my shopping.

Me & Dec grabbed the food stuffs and headed off out towards Cineworld in an effort to grab a taxi. We grabbed one and began the slow journey back to Glasnevin. 45 mins later with the metre running at a hefty €26, we abandoned the taxi in Phibsboro in the deluge and off we treked. Eventually got home by about 8, bewildered, extremely wet & now resigned that plans of going out were risky given how bad traffic was everywhere & the fact that trains were off too. And then the NTL was struck by the water too. Brilliant. Thankfully the offy near the gardens didn't let their flooded store room stop them from selling booze.

Seriously though, it might have been some freaky rain in a short space of time but it wasn't exactly a monsoon. There has to be some fundamental problems with Dublin's drainage systems that it can't handle rain that the counties on the western seaboard deal with more frequently without ending up on the 6 o'clock news. The city just ground to a total halt and all because of rain? And to think, it's only August. We're known for being a rainy country, time the people in the councils started expecting the stuff just like the tourists.