Tillage farmers are counting the cost of an intense thunderstorm that hit the Enniscorthy area of Wexford on Sunday afternoon.

Huge volumes of rain fell in a matter of minutes. At the centre of the storm, a barrage of large hailstones shredded heads from grain and bean crops.

While only a relatively small area was affected, the damage has been described as "significant" by Wexford IF grain chair John Murphy.

"It's been a difficult year for growers in this county, with a late spring delaying planting, and then a drought from mid-May affecting the potential of crops," said Murphy.

"This is the last thing any farmer needs."

Balls of ice, over an inch across, fell just after 3pm on Sunday afternoon, with strong winds only increasing the damage they inflicted.

Source - https://www.farmersjournal.ie