The first five months of 2016 saw the second highest level of rainfall in Fermoy during the last 10 years, following on from the wettest winter during the same period, according to data provided by Met Éireann.
A total of 529.2mm of rain fell between January and May of this year, surpassing the 377.1 of rain during the same period in 2015.
Only 2014 experienced a wetter period up to May over the last 10 years when over 633mm of rain fell, compared to just 213.3mm in 2011 and 255.5mm in 2012. This year 168.4mm of rain fell in January, with 153.1mm in February, 47.3mm in March, 104.1mm in April, and 56.3mm in May.
Last December, as the country battled a series of storms, 324.3mm of rain was recorded at Moorepark, Fermoy, with 755.9mm of rainfall in the four months between November and February. The Met Éireann statistics also show that the mean maximum temperature for May was 17.1 degrees, the warmest temperature for May in the last 10 years.
Warmer temperatures and higher levels of rainfall is consistent with climate change. As global temperatures rise and the air becomes warmer, more moisture evaporates from land and water into the atmosphere.
More moisture in the air generally means more rain and more heavy downpours, increasing the risk and frequency of flooding, such as the local area experienced in recent years.
