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Annacotty, County Limerick (2)Photo: Sarah777 · CC BY-SA 2.0
BHazard risk Grade
Flood & hazards in Annacotty · EPA, GSI and OPW data

Beside the River Mulkear, 18% of Annacotty’s homes stand on low ground

With an estimated 1% of homes above the radon reference level, among the lower shares, Annacotty grades B for hazard risk, #9 of 15 in County Limerick. Radon, landslide ground and its low-lying homes all count, and the low-lying homes pull it down.

18%of homes low-lying1 in 10flood scheme1%of homes over the radon level
In brief

What stands out about Annacotty’s hazards

From the EPA’s radon map, Geological Survey Ireland’s landslide map, the OPW’s flood relief schemes and our estimate of low-lying homes, below.

A river town18% of homes stand low beside the River Mulkear: a higher share than in 80% of Irish towns.Behind a flood schemeThe Mulkear River (Ballymackeogh) Flood Relief Scheme protects about 1.1% of homes, designed for a 1-in-10-year flood.Some radonAbout 1% of homes are estimated above the radon reference level, a lower share than in 83% of Irish towns; 0% of homes are in a High Radon Area.
By hazard

What Annacotty faces

Each hazard against its own yardstick; meters run from low to high on that yardstick.

Low-lying homes

18%of homes low by a big river, lake or the sea
a higher share than in 80% of Irish towns
About 210 homes

Radon

1%of homes estimated over the reference level
less radon than in 83% of Irish towns
0% of homes in a High Radon Area

Landslides

0%of homes on high or moderately high ground
No home on landslide-prone ground
Rated from the ground and its slope

Flood scheme

1 in 10the flood its scheme is built for
1.1% of homes behind it
Mulkear River (Ballymackeogh) Flood Relief Scheme

Ground heights

100%of homes on detailed ground heights
Enough to measure flood (80% needed)
Of 1,146 homes counted
Not on this page: the OPW’s official flood maps and past floods (their licence doesn’t allow reuse here: see floodinfo.ie), groundwater and surface-water flooding, coastal erosion and industrial sites.
Hazard risk Grade

Annacotty grades B for hazard risk

Radon, landslide ground and low-lying homes, each against Irish towns, then averaged.

Radon (1%)Better than 76% of Irish towns
Landslide ground (0%)Better than 57% of Irish towns
Low-lying homes (18%)Better than 19% of Irish towns · counted against it

Each figure is placed among Irish towns of 1,000 or more people; the grade averages the three, so a better place on each is a better grade.

Flood counts only against a town, and Annacotty’s share of low-lying homes is high enough to lower its grade.

Its place: #9 of 15 in County Limerick and #126 of 321 Irish towns.

Less sure: The low-lying figure is our estimate from ground heights and the river map, not an official flood map. It can show a town is low-lying; it can’t show a town is safe.

Low-lying homes

18% of Annacotty’s homes stand low beside the River Mulkear

Low-lying homes, a TownRatings estimate from OPW and Geological Survey Ireland LiDAR ground heights and the EPA’s river map: not an official flood map.

By a river, lake or estuary18%of homes within 5 m of the water’s level
Near the sea0%of homes below 4 m, within 2 km of the sea
Measured in detail100%of homes on detailed ground heights
Where Annacotty sits among 231 Irish towns
43%None
6%Under 0.5%
4%0.5–1%
7%1–2%
8%2–5%
6%5–10%
8%10–20%Annacotty
18%20% +

Share of each town’s homes standing low by big water, for the towns measured in detail. 43% have none; Annacotty has more than 80% of them.

Towns its size: 33rd of 40, from the fewest low-lying homes
#TownPeopleLow-lying
1Prospect and Newtown Pery Limerick4,1220%
2Charleville Cork3,9700%
3Farranree Cork3,8240%
…
31Newcastle Galway4,03213%
32Limerick City Centre Limerick3,43415%
33Annacotty Limerick3,39818%
34Boyle Roscommon2,91518%
35Callan Kilkenny2,67819%
…
39Claddagh Galway2,75591%
40Cork City Centre Cork3,701100%

The 40 Irish towns nearest its size that are measured in detail.

1,146
homes counted
~210
homes standing low by big water
11%
County Limerick’s median
0.7%
median of Irish towns

Low-lying homes across County Limerick’s towns · 15 towns measured in detail

Corbally and King's Island48%
Ballinacurra39%
Newcastle West23%
Annacotty18%
Caherdavin15%
Dooradoyle15%
Limerick City Centre15%

Annacotty ranks 4th of County Limerick’s 15 towns measured in detail, counting from the most low-lying homes.

Homes: OpenStreetMap buildings of 30 m² or more, not tagged as non-residential, in the town’s Census 2022 Small Areas. Heights: GSI Open Topographic Data LiDAR (OPW, TII and GSI surveys). Water: EPA river network (rivers of Strahler order 5 or more), lakes, estuaries and coastal waters.

River levels

The River Mulkear at Annacotty peaked at 3.85 m in December 2015

Each winter’s highest level (October to September) at the OPW’s Annacotty gauge, in Annacotty, since 1972, in metres above the gauge’s zero. Nine days in ten it runs between 0.20 m and 1.53 m.

Each winter’s highest level, metres
Winter 1972–73: highest 3.21 m · 24 days above the normal rangeWinter 1973–74: highest 3.37 m · 49 days above the normal rangeWinter 1974–75: highest 3.36 m · 24 days above the normal rangeWinter 1977–78: highest 3.30 m · 27 days above the normal rangeWinter 1978–79: highest 3.03 m · 33 days above the normal rangeWinter 1981–82: highest 2.50 m · 34 days above the normal rangeWinter 1982–83: highest 3.43 m · 47 days above the normal rangeWinter 1983–84: highest 3.35 m · 40 days above the normal rangeWinter 1984–85: highest 2.61 m · 22 days above the normal rangeWinter 1985–86: highest 3.33 m · 31 days above the normal rangeWinter 1986–87: highest 2.90 m · 22 days above the normal rangeWinter 1987–88: highest 2.94 m · 42 days above the normal rangeWinter 1988–89: highest 3.21 m · 26 days above the normal rangeWinter 1989–90: highest 3.64 m on 6 February 1990 · 32 days above the normal rangeWinter 1990–91: highest 3.08 m · 40 days above the normal rangeWinter 1991–92: highest 3.19 m · 32 days above the normal rangeWinter 1992–93: highest 3.06 m · 34 days above the normal rangeWinter 1993–94: highest 3.24 m · 73 days above the normal rangeWinter 1994–95: highest 3.61 m on 22 February 1995 · 65 days above the normal rangeWinter 1995–96: highest 2.97 m · 24 days above the normal rangeWinter 1996–97: highest 3.33 m · 42 days above the normal rangeWinter 1997–98: highest 3.17 m · 42 days above the normal rangeWinter 1998–99: highest 3.22 m · 39 days above the normal rangeWinter 1999–00: highest 2.95 m · 41 days above the normal rangeWinter 2000–01: highest 3.33 m · 31 days above the normal rangeWinter 2001–02: highest 2.84 m · 34 days above the normal rangeWinter 2002–03: highest 2.62 m · 25 days above the normal rangeWinter 2003–04: highest 2.90 m · 12 days above the normal rangeWinter 2004–05: highest 3.17 m · 38 days above the normal rangeWinter 2005–06: highest 2.64 m · 18 days above the normal rangeWinter 2006–07: highest 2.95 m · 33 days above the normal rangeWinter 2007–08: highest 3.28 m · 55 days above the normal rangeWinter 2008–09: highest 3.23 m · 37 days above the normal rangeWinter 2009–10: highest 3.22 m · 49 days above the normal rangeWinter 2010–11: highest 3.05 m · 23 days above the normal rangeWinter 2011–12: highest 3.20 m · 45 days above the normal rangeWinter 2012–13: highest 3.27 m · 29 days above the normal rangeWinter 2013–14: highest 3.27 m · 62 days above the normal rangeWinter 2014–15: highest 3.39 m · 50 days above the normal rangeWinter 2015–16: highest 3.85 m on 12 December 2015 · 80 days above the normal rangeWinter 2016–17: highest 2.68 m · 27 days above the normal rangeWinter 2018–19: highest 3.52 m on 16 March 2019 · 32 days above the normal rangeWinter 2019–20: highest 3.79 m on 10 March 2020 · 65 days above the normal rangeWinter 2020–21: highest 2.62 m · 47 days above the normal rangeWinter 2021–22: highest 3.50 m on 20 February 2022 · 35 days above the normal rangeWinter 2022–23: highest 3.41 m · 61 days above the normal rangeWinter 2023–24: highest 3.11 m · 39 days above the normal rangeWinter 2024–25: highest 2.85 m · 22 days above the normal rangeWinter 2025–26: highest 3.25 m · 50 days above the normal range’15–16’19–20’89–90Record 3.85 m, 2015Top of normal range
1972–732025–26
The highest days on record
  • 12 December 20153.85 m
  • 10 March 20203.79 m
  • 6 February 19903.64 m
  • 22 February 19953.61 m
  • 27 December 19943.59 m
  • 16 March 20193.52 m

Since 1972 the River Mulkear has run above its usual top on 1,884 days, most of them in the winters of 2015–16 and 1993–94.

Measured by its highest day, last winter (2025–26) was the 20th-highest of the 49 on record here.

Source: OPW Hydro-Data (waterlevel.ie/hydro-data), Annacotty gauge (station 25001): daily maximum and mean levels, inspected and provisional data. The usual range is the 5th to 95th percentile of daily means, worked out by TownRatings. Live levels are on waterlevel.ie.

Warnings

Weather and flood warnings for Annacotty

Where to see the warnings in force, and what this page can’t count.

Met Éireann issues yellow, orange and red warnings for rain, wind and coastal flooding county by county; Annacotty is covered by County Limerick’s.

WarningWhat Met Éireann means by it
YellowWeather that isn’t unusual but can be dangerous in places: be aware.
OrangeInfrequent, dangerous weather that can put people and property at risk: be prepared.
RedRare, extremely dangerous weather: take action to protect yourself and your property.

Met Éireann doesn’t publish an open archive of past warnings, so how often warnings have covered Annacotty can’t be counted here.

Met Éireann warnings · OPW river levels (waterlevel.ie)

Flood scheme

The Mulkear River (Ballymackeogh) Flood Relief Scheme protects part of Annacotty

The Office of Public Works’ completed flood relief schemes and the areas each one benefits (OPW open data, CC BY 4.0).

Designed for
1 in 10 years
the flood it is built to hold back
Homes behind it
1.1%
in the area the Mulkear River (Ballymackeogh) Flood Relief Scheme protects
Schemes
1
Mulkear River (Ballymackeogh) Flood Relief Scheme
Protected places in the county
1
across County Limerick, this town included

A scheme lowers the chance of flooding behind it; it doesn’t remove it. The low-lying figure counts homes behind defences too, so a defended town can still show a high share.

No OPW flood relief scheme protects homes anywhere else across County Limerick.

The protected places nearest here
TownSchemeDesigned forHomes behind itAway
Annacotty LimerickMulkear River (Ballymackeogh) Flood Relief Scheme1 in 101.1%–
Ennis ClareEnnis (Upper) Flood Relief Scheme1 in 1003.5%36 km
Gort GalwayGort River (Bridge Street) Drainage Scheme1 in 1000.9%49 km
Mallow CorkMallow South & West Flood Relief Scheme1 in 1002.6%59 km
Fermoy CorkFermoy South Flood Relief Scheme1 in 1006.3%61 km
Clonmel TipperaryClonmel (North & East) Flood Relief Scheme1 in 1007.4%66 km

Official flood maps and past floods: floodinfo.ie

Landslides

No home in Annacotty stands on landslide-prone ground

Geological Survey Ireland’s landslide susceptibility map (1:50,000), read at every home.

Homes on ground rated high or moderately high

AnnacottyCounty Limerick’s medianmedian of Irish towns
High or moderately high0%
0%5%

Annacotty is among the 64% of Irish towns with no home on such ground.

GSI rates ground from low to high by its slope, soil and rock. Most Irish landslides are on steep upland slopes and peat after heavy rain; a town on flat ground has almost none.

High means the ground could slide under the right conditions, such as days of heavy rain on a steep, wet slope; it isn’t a forecast that it will.

GSI landslide susceptibility, high and moderately high classes, share of the town’s homes on mapped ground (CC BY 4.0).

Radon

An estimated 1% of Annacotty’s homes are above the radon reference level

The EPA’s radon map: for each 10 km square, the estimated share of homes above the national reference level of 200 Bq/m³.

21% of homes estimated above the reference level · Over 20% (High Radon Area)1.6% of homes estimated above the reference level · 1–5% of homes0.1% of homes estimated above the reference level · Under 1% of homes1% of homes estimated above the reference level · 1–5% of homes1% of homes estimated above the reference level · Under 1% of homes1.4% of homes estimated above the reference level · 1–5% of homesunder 0.1% of homes estimated above the reference level · Under 1% of homes3.6% of homes estimated above the reference level · 1–5% of homes0% of homes estimated above the reference level · Under 1% of homes0.8% of homes estimated above the reference level · Under 1% of homes4.5% of homes estimated above the reference level · 1–5% of homes© OpenStreetMap contributors · EPA
Under 1% of homes1–5% of homesOver 20% (High Radon Area)
Share of Irish towns in each band
Under 1% of homes17%
1–5% of homes · Annacotty38%
5–10% of homes26%
10–20% (High Radon Area)11%
Over 20% (High Radon Area)9%

A square where 10% or more of homes are estimated above the reference level is a High Radon Area; 0% of Annacotty’s homes are in one. The map is an estimate by area: two neighbouring houses can differ a lot.

0%
of homes in a High Radon Area
1.6%
County Limerick’s median
4%
median of Irish towns

A test is the only way to know a home’s level: two detectors, left for three months in a living room and a bedroom.

EPA radon map of Ireland (10 km grid), averaged over the town’s homes (CC BY 4.0).

Industrial sites

4 EPA-licensed sites within 5 km of Annacotty’s centre, none inside it

Factories, farms, power plants and waste sites that hold an EPA licence for their emissions, in Annacotty and around its centre.

0
licensed sites inside Annacotty
4
licensed sites within 5 km of the centre
1.0 km
to the nearest: Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Ireland Unlimited Company
The 8 nearest licensed sites
SiteLicence and activityAway
Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Ireland Unlimited CompanyIndustrial Emissions licence · solvents and coatings1.0 km
Cook Ireland LtdIPC licence1.8 km
Info-Lab LimitedIPC licence2.1 km
Galvotech lreland LimitedIndustrial Emissions licence4.5 km
Zinc Processors Limited Trading As Shannonside GalvanizingIndustrial Emissions licence · metals5.2 km
Longpavement landfill siteWaste licence7.1 km
James McMahon LimitedIPC licence8.1 km
J.H. Roche and Sons LimitedIndustrial Emissions licence · food and drink8.4 km
What the 15 licensed sites within 10 km do
ActivitySites
Not classed in the register6
Waste3
Solvents and coatings2
Chemicals2
Metals1
Food and drink1

Within 5 km: 2 under Industrial Emissions licences and 2 under older IPC licences.

An EPA licence sets what a site may release to air, water and land; it doesn’t mark the site as an accident hazard.

Sites holding dangerous substances in bulk come under the COMAH (Seveso) rules, but the HSA’s list of them has no open licence, so upper- and lower-tier sites aren’t counted here.

Source: EPA registers of Industrial Emissions, IPC and waste licences, sites licensed on 31 October 2026; distances in a straight line from the town’s centre.

Neighbours

Hazards in the places around Annacotty

Low-lying homes, radon and landslide ground, town by town.

CastletroyGarryowenWestburyGalvoneCorbally and King's IslandCastleconnellCastletroyGarryowenWestburyGalvoneCorbally and King's IslandCastleconnellAnnacotty
TownLow-lyingRadonLandslides
Annacotty18%1%0%
Castletroy
15,093 · 1.8 km		1.8%1%0.3%
Garryowen
5,428 · 4.5 km		1%1.5%0%
Westbury
3,636 · 4.9 km		91%1.6%0%
Galvone
5,412 · 5.4 km		0%1.6%0%
Corbally and King's Island
14,213 · 5.5 km		48%1.6%0%
Castleconnell
2,488 · 5.7 km		13%1%0%

Of the places around Annacotty, Westbury has the most homes standing low by big water (91%), 4.9 km away.

A dash under Low-lying: not measured there (too few homes with detailed ground heights), not none.

Be ready

Get ready for what Annacotty faces

What to do, and what to ask before you move.

When the river rises
  • Never walk or drive through floodwater: 30 cm of moving water can float a car.
  • Move valuables, papers and medicines upstairs.
  • Turn off gas, electricity and water if you’re told to.
Met Éireann warnings · floodinfo.ie
Radon
  • Test over three months, in a living room and a bedroom.
  • Above 200 Bq/m³, a small sump and fan usually fixes it.
  • The EPA sells radon test kits at radon.ie and lists registered contractors who fix high readings.
radon.ie
When a storm is forecast
  • Bring in or tie down bins, trampolines and anything the wind can lift.
  • Keep away from coastal paths and piers while an orange or red warning is in force.
  • Charge phones and keep a torch: fallen lines are the commonest storm damage.
  • After the storm, report a fallen line to ESB Networks and keep well clear of it.
ESB Networks PowerCheck
Before you buy or rent in Annacotty
  • Ask whether the home has ever flooded, and get a buildings insurance quote before you commit: flood cover isn’t always offered.
  • Behind a completed OPW scheme? Insurers in Insurance Ireland agreed in 2014 to offer flood cover in those areas: ask for it by name.
  • Ask the seller or landlord for a radon test result, or test in your first months there.
  • Check the address on floodinfo.ie: the OPW’s flood maps and its record of past floods.
How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

  • An estimate, not a flood map. Low-lying homes is a TownRatings modelling step: each home’s ground height from LiDAR, against the level of the nearest big river (Strahler order 5 or more), lake or estuary within 1 km, or the sea within 2 km. A home within 5 m of the water’s level, or below 4 m near the sea, counts.
  • Flood counts only one way. A high share of low-lying homes lowers the Hazard risk Grade; a low share never raises it, because defences, small streams, culverts, groundwater and flash floods don’t show in ground heights. Below the national median a town scores as the median.
  • Defences aren’t counted. Flood defences aren’t taken off: the OPW scheme that protects the most homes is shown instead, with its design standard.
  • Measured where the heights are detailed. A town is measured, and counted, only where 80% of its homes stand on LiDAR heights. Elsewhere the page says flooding isn’t measured, never that the town is dry.
  • Radon is an estimate by area. The EPA’s radon map gives the estimated share of homes above 200 Bq/m³ for each 10 km square, averaged here over the town’s homes. It says where to test, not what one house holds.
  • The sea is measured by height. Homes count as low by the sea when their ground is under 4 m and within 2 km of coastal or estuary water; waves, surges and erosion aren’t modelled.
  • Landslide ground is a map of where slides could start. GSI’s susceptibility map rates the ground itself; it doesn’t record past slides or say when one will happen.
  • Bathing water is rated season by season. The EPA classes each identified bathing water from four seasons of samples; a rating says how clean the water has been, not how safe it is to swim.
  • One town, many streets. Risk is street by street. Check a specific address on floodinfo.ie before you buy or rent.

Check any address against the OPW’s official flood maps on floodinfo.ie

Questions about flooding and hazards in Annacotty

Does Annacotty flood?

About 18% of Annacotty’s homes stand low beside the River Mulkear: a higher share than in 80% of Irish towns. That is our estimate from ground heights, not an official flood map. For a single address, the OPW’s official flood maps and past floods are on floodinfo.ie.

Is radon a problem in Annacotty?

The EPA’s map estimates that about 1% of homes around Annacotty are above the radon reference level of 200 Bq/m³: a lower share than in 83% of Irish towns. 0% of its homes are in a High Radon Area. The only way to know a house is a three-month test.

Is Annacotty at risk of landslides?

No home in Annacotty stands on ground rated high or moderately high for landslides.

Is Annacotty at risk from the sea?

None of Annacotty’s homes stands below 4 m within 2 km of the sea, so the sea plays no part in its share of low-lying homes; 18% stand low by rivers, lakes and estuaries.

How does Annacotty compare with the places around it?

Radon estimates around Annacotty run from 1% in Castleconnell to 1.6% in Westbury; Annacotty’s own is 1%. Among the places measured in detail, Westbury has the largest share of homes standing low (91%).

How is Annacotty’s Hazard risk Grade worked out?

Annacotty grades B: radon, landslide ground and low-lying homes are each placed among Irish towns, and the grade averages them.

Flood: TownRatings’ estimate from ground heights, not an official flood map. Contains Irish Public Sector Data (Geological Survey Ireland, the Office of Public Works and the EPA) licensed under CC BY 4.0; Copernicus DEM © DLR e.V. and © Airbus, provided under COPERNICUS by the EU and ESA; © OpenStreetMap contributors. Radon and bathing water: EPA (CC BY 4.0). Landslide susceptibility: Geological Survey Ireland (CC BY 4.0).

Sources: low-lying homes: TownRatings’ estimate from GSI and OPW LiDAR, Copernicus GLO-30 and the EPA river network · radon: EPA radon map · landslides: GSI landslide susceptibility · flood schemes: OPW flood relief scheme benefiting areas · river levels: OPW Hydro-Data (waterlevel.ie/hydro-data) · industrial sites: EPA licence registers · the grade: TownRatings, from these figures. Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).

Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).