Breda Scanlan is 51 years old and lives with her husband in their apartment on Peter's Street in Cork city centre. Like hundreds of others, she discovered last weekend that her home was beginning to flood. By the time the weather abated, the Scanlons were left to deal with a scene of devastation. Here, Breda gives an account of her week and the massive clean-up operation she and her neighbours were faced with.

Day One - Tuesday

A few days ago, we were woken by a neighbour who alerted us to the fact that a lot of water was beginning to gather around our apartment blocks. We didn't know how bad it would get for us. Today, however, the damage is clear.

We are looking at a scene of total destruction – the whole place looks like it will have to be completely taken apart, bit by bit. My home was completely flooded over the last few days, and so too were all the other flats surrounding me. It is a big shock – everything will have to go. We have all lost our cars. I now have no transport and feel very lost.

There's still water all around us. We would have thought it would have receded by now. Overall, there was a huge amount of water initially; it even went a few feet up the stairs. It looks like I might be covered by my insurance, so I may be one of the lucky ones, but I'll know soon enough. Some of my neighbours have been told outright there is no way they will qualify for insurance, and they have no idea about what to do next.

The assessor came up today and he wants a list of items, and when we start on that early tomorrow we will see exactly how much we have lost. The apartment block is half empty – some have moved in with family members as they can't possibly live here in the destruction.

Day Two - Wednesday

Only now are we starting to realise the full extent of the damage the massive flooding has caused. We don't have a washing machine, a dryer, a fridge or a freezer. Our clothes, towels and basics like that are ruined. And now that we are in the process of putting together our list for the insurance assessor we are seeing that we have not much left at all. It is absolutely freezing today and there is still water in corners and different parts of the apartment block.

The one thing which truly sticks in my mind today is the smell. It is an awful, strong pungent smell. It is unbearable and it is everywhere. We can't seem to get rid of it. My grandchildren just called in, and they are shocked at how bad things are. The thing about all of this is that people just don't realise how bad it is for those of us who have had their homes destroyed. I just saw my heartbroken neighbours come in to try and figure out what they are going to do with their ruined possessions, and about their insurance problems. They are starting their own clear out now.

My two dogs, Max and Fluffy, were afraid to go anywhere near the flood water. Apart from that they haven't been a problem in the overall clean-up – they have been great. I have been keeping them out of the way though.

Day Three - Thursday

While clearing out all of our damaged items, we realised we lost our Christmas stock. Presents, decorations and lights that we were due to be putting all over our home around this time of year are all destroyed. It is the small things like this which really make you despair, the things that you build up over years that you wouldn't even consider in the middle of all this. Not only that, but myself and my husband have been keen campers over the years – it has always been our hobby together. We spent years building up a lot of expensive equipment, tents and outdoor materials. Because of the water, they are all ruined and there was nothing we could recover. This is a big blow for us, given it was something which got us out and about and we loved it.

Two of the flats next door are nearly cleared out now. It has been a huge operation. I'm completely wearied by all the moving around and chaos of it all at this stage. The place is still filthy and because we are still living here in one of the rooms which was not hit as badly as the rest, we are living right in the middle of all the madness. The insurance company still haven't come to collect the cars because they are literally run off their feet collecting vehicles which are completely ruined. Today is spent pulling up lino, stripping the place completely bare. Everything goes. After further analysis to the building, it is clear that it will take at least two months until we are back to anything resembling normality.

There is one small saving grace – that awful smell is starting to recede as we are leaving all the doors open but generally, things are still as bad as they were yesterday.

Day Four - Friday

We spent today scrubbing down the walls and disinfecting everything in sight. Our home is completely bare, but at least it's clean. It's like starting all over again in a new house. I am still putting the list together for the insurance company – it has literally taken this long to count up the damage that has been caused.

The council is now here clearing out other properties, so that there will be nothing left but the walls and the floors. We have a TV in here now, so tonight for the first night since this all started myself and my family are going to try and take it easy and watch the Late Late Toy Show – that is if we all don't fall asleep from the tiredness. I was up until almost three in the morning last night just trying to get through the cleaning and clearing out. This has been one of the most tiring experiences.

I am missing my car an awful lot, but there is one blessing in the fact that we live in the city centre in that we can get around.

There is one mammoth task looming though – the garden. Our shed, decking and seating has all been ruined. We have lost our lawnmower, our barbecue and all our other garden items. The garden is generally in an absolute heap. But family will be over to help start on that next week and we will give our insurers our list and pray it is all okay from here.

We have a community dinner coming up in two weeks' time, and after the week we have had it is something to look forward to. I'm sure we'll talk endlessly about all this, but we will definitely have a drink.