Kilkeel flooding: First as extreme weather sinks vessel in harbour

Kevin Quigley, chief executive of Northern Ireland Fishery Harbour Authority, told the News Letter: "Yes, one vessel sank, and at least three other vessels sustained significant damage.

"It is likely to be more as people go back onto their boats and assess what's happened."

He affirmed it is exceptional for weather conditions to sink a vessel in safe harbour.

"It is stunningly unusual - it just doesn't happen. We have never ever experienced conditions in the harbour like it."

Normally the vessels will be covered for such events by insurance, which is the responsibility of each owner.

In this case the owner of the sunken vessel was indeed covered, he said."He is obviously devastated. He has lost his vessel and his livelihood."

It is not known if his insurance might also cover loss of earnings.

Mr Quigley could not say for certain if there could be a repeat of the damage in the near future."Now that it has happened once, the threshold has been crossed, sadly," he added.

Local DUP Councillor Henry Reilly said the cost of the damage would run into hundreds of thousands of pounds.

"This has never happened before in my memory," he said.

"Fishermen are angry that they did not receive warnings on the extent of the rainfall or the effect it could have when entering the harbour through the Aughrim River,.

"Several businesses in the Harbour estate were also damaged as the river overflowed before getting to the harbour."

He said a storage facility for a local factory was also flooded.

"There is a belief that Mourne has been overlooked in terms of flood protection as the harbour estate has flooded several times before.”