Did it rain frogs in Athlone on Saturday last?

It may have been "raining cats and dogs" over the last couple of weeks across the country, but for parts of South Roscommon on Saturday morning last, it was raining frogs! The rare meteorological phenomenon is believed to occur when animals, such as frogs, are sucked up into the higher levels of the atmosphere, by strong winds, before being deposited as rain from the clouds. There have been several recorded instances of such incidents throughout history. Over 25 dead frogs, many encased in ice, were found strewn along the roadside on the N61 (Athlone to Roscommon Road) on Saturday morning last. One man, who doesn"t wish to be named, told the Westmeath Independent he had been cycling to Roscommon at around 10am when he began to encounter a series of frogs along the hard shoulder. The man came across the first frog near the Hill of Berries and he continued to find further batches as far as St John"s as he made his way towards Roscommon. He told the Westmeath Independent: 'I thought it might have been breeding season or something and that they might have been hit crossing the road, but then I began to find them covered in ice.' The Athlone native estimates he came across a half dozen or so still encased in ice. 'Some even had their legs sticking out of the ice,' he said. 'I"d heard of the phenomenon of raining frogs, but I never thought I"d see something like this,' the man told the Westmeath Independent. Did you witness this strange incident? Let us know. Email: editor@westmeathindependent.ie or contact our offices at 090 6434300