'No Christmas in Midleton' as angry locals begin Storm Babet flooding clean-up

They also want to know why homes and businesses in Midleton are suffering from a lack of flood protection insurance that firms will not give, through no fault of their own.

Ms O’Donnell said: “I had a choice to save my business or my car because it came upon us so quickly. Every one of our staff has stepped up in the aftermath, it’s about time that our political leaders do the same.” 

A bureaucracy-free payment to get businesses back on their feet immediately should be an urgent priority, Ms O’Donnell said.

Ms Dunlea estimated losing €30,000 worth of children’s clothing stock in minutes — again, it is uninsured.

“It came from everywhere, I went to move my car at 1pm and 10 minutes later, it was destroyed. There will be no Christmas in Midleton this year unless action is taken, we are sick of it, living in fear of this happening over and over again, with no help from Government or insurance companies.

"Why do towns like Fermoy, Mallow, Bandon and Clonmel have flood defences but Midleton doesn't, despite getting hit over and over again?" she said.

Gráinne O’Sullivan, who tried in vain to keep the waters at bay at the home of her partner on Thomas Street, was visibly distraught as she described the deluge coming from all sides.

Everything they had worked so hard to build since renovating the once-derelict property on Thomas Street six years ago is destroyed, she said.

Insurance for flood damage will not be given, just like homes all over the East Cork town, she said.

At one point, the water was chest-high. All appliances and her partner’s carpentry tools have been destroyed.

“Everything is gone,” she said.

One of the country’s leading authorities on climate change, Maynooth University geography professor Peter Thorne, warned Cork and Waterford should brace for such events to become more frequent in the future, due to climate change.

“This is an example of a compound extreme event — a combination of the riverine flooding, the storm surge, and long-term sea level rise has led to major implications for Cork today. As I have noted repeatedly, it was only a matter of time before that combination hits us.

“It is inevitable that the probability of these events will increase, whether it will happen more and more every year in Cork is another question,” he said.

"But it will happen more and more around the globe, and that means on average that Cork or Dublin or Galway or Waterford will experience these kinds of things more frequently."