Ireland warns of further high winds, heavy rain

Ireland on Monday warned of further stormy weather, with flooding reported in some southern and western counties. State broadcaster RTE reported that Met Eireann, the Irish national meteorological service, has upgraded its weather alert from its lowest level of yellow to orange, as severe gusts of up to 120km/h sweep across the country. In south Ireland's Cork county, there was flooding in Cork city Monday morning as the River Lee burst its banks once again. There are still pockets of surface flooding in Cork city, but with no major reports of flood damage. In west Ireland's Galway county, flood waters have started to recede in Galway city after high tides and strong winds caused road closures earlier Monday morning. RTE said there was also some flooding in Mayo county, according to RTE. It added Irish ferries service has cancelled fast ferry sailings due to the stormy weather. People are being advised not to go out on exposed coasts, cliffs, piers, harbor walls and promenades. In another development, Ireland's premier electricity utility ESB said around 5,000 ESB customers across the country are still without power. This includes around 2,500 in the northwest and another 1,500 in the southwest.