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NI weather: Flooding in some areas with more heavy rain due

BBC Weather graphic of yellow warning for rain and heavy showersBBC

Parts of NI have been experiencing flooding on Saturday, with the Met Office warning of more heavy rain.

An alert affecting counties Antrim and Down was in place until 18:00 BST.

A second weather warning, covering most of Northern Ireland, came into place at 21:00 - it lasts until midday on Sunday.

In County Down, the Portaferry Road in Kircubbin has been closed at the Inishargey Road junction due to flooding.

Police asked drivers to avoid the area.

The Met Office had warned that heavy and frequent showers coming in from the east coast could bring a lot of rain in a short period of time.

It said there could be 10mm (0.4in) of rainfall within an hour, with up to 40mm (1.6in) falling in six hours in places hit by the heaviest showers.

Frequent showers will again affect mainly southern and central areas overnight, with up to 10mm of rain falling in an hour.

Up to 30mm (1.2in) of rain could fall in some parts in a six-hour period.

Parts of Bangor experienced flooding on Saturday afternoon.

'I thought I'd get some training in'

One resident, Carla Milne, decided it was a good opportunity to get her paddleboard out for some training before she heads to the Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP) World Championships in Thailand next month.

Ben Patterson Woman on paddleboard in residential area, Bangor, County DownBen Patterson
Carla Milne, who is due to compete in the paddle-boarding world championships in Thailand next month, negotiates floods in Glenburn Park in Ballyholme, Bangor

"I thought I'd make the most of the water - it was just deep enough to paddle through," she said.

"It's cleared up now because residents have been hard at work clearing the water - we located the drains, lifted and unblocked them.

"The fire service came down but they said there was nothing more for them to do as the flooding was clearing up."

Ms Milne said several garages in the Glenburn Park area of Ballyholme had been flooded and a few homes affected but residents had been sweeping the water away.

She is hoping for better weather in Thailand, where she heads for the SUP world championships in 12 days.

"I hope the water is warmer because it's pretty cold here when you're sorting the drains," she said.

Weekend weather warnings have also been issued for the east coast of the Republic of Ireland, with heavy rain showers expected.

The Irish weather service, Met Éireann, warned of spells of heavy and thundery rain on Saturday evening and overnight.

Difficult driving conditions and disruption to outdoor events could occur as a result of the rain, it said.