A motorist had a lucky escape this afternoon after his campervan was blown across a busy road and through a stone wall during stormy conditions in Co Clare.
The incident occurred at around 2.00pm on the main R478 Lahinch to Doolin coast road where the busy route crosses its highest point at the Cliffs of Moher.
Units of Clare County Fire and Rescue Service from Ennistymon station, National Ambulance Service paramedics and Gardaí responded to the scene. The male driver of the vehicle managed to escape uninjured however.
It appears the campervan was blown across the road and through a stone wall before coming to rest on its side. Fortunately there was no oncoming traffic at the time. Winds remain dangerously strong in the area this afternoon but the route remains open.
While the road past the iconic 700ft high cliffs is sheltered for the most part, at the top of a hill the land from the cliff edge opens up leaving the road is exposed to the Atlantic winds.
Fire crews remained at the scene for a time but were stood down while arrangements were made to source a heavy lift crane to remove the vehicle. Fire crews returned to the scene when the recovery truck arrived. The road was closed for about 30 minutes to facilitate the safe removal of the campervan.
Fire crews and the recovery truck operator had to work in windy conditions to safely remove the campervan from the scene.
Clare remains under a Status Yellow wind warning, the second consecutive alert for the county. A Status Yellow wind and rain warning expired at 11.00pm on Saturday and was immediately replaced with another wind alert.
The area where this afternoon’s incident occurred is prone to high winds and has seen vehicles blown off the road in the same location in the past. In February 2020 a driver escaped injury after his van was blown off the road and overturned into a field at the sane location.
