Petition urges start to flood relief measures in East Cork

A PETITION is being circulated in East Cork demanding an immediate start to temporary flood relief measures.

The document, which is available in most shops and businesses, includes a warning that people could have lost their lives in the October flood, had it occurred at night.

According to the petition, which has been initiated by the Midleton and East Cork Flood Protection Group, the community in Midleton and surrounding villages of Dungourney, Castlemartyr, Carrigtwohill, Killeagh, Mogeely, Ladysbridge, and Whitegate in East Cork could not wait any longer for action to put in place interim flood relief measures.

“Friends and families have been displaced, fallen ill and suffered unspeakable trauma; businesses severely harmed, some lost altogether, and others facing extreme threat from a repeat event,” the petition reads.

Chairperson of the group, Mona Stromsoe, said the threat to life during the October 18 flood was real and that there had been some near-fatalities.

“If this flood happened at night it is almost certain there would have been loss of life. There are several stories of people being rescued from homes and rushing water on the street,” she said. “This constitutes a national emergency, underscoring the imperative for immediate interim measures to safeguard lives in our community.”

Ms Stromsoe said that some of those impacted by the flooding were still displaced while families were split up and others were living in homes with poor conditions.

“The cost of repairs to peoples properties has been enormous, with estimates of €130k and upwards on some houses. This is the damage water and sewerage does to a property. This is not just a bricks and mortar issue, the mental health implications have also been huge. We need urgent measures to prevent this happening again.”

She said that of the group and the wider community of Midleton and surrounding villages were discouraged and disappointed when it emerged that it would be a further eight years until a permanent flood relief scheme for Midleton would be completed, 23 years after it was first discussed in 2010.

“When the floods hit in 2015, we were told it was a once in a hundred years event, and yet we were hit just eight years later by a flood which was worse than that. The flood that hit us in October came so fast that it was upon us in minutes with flood water rising in some cases up to six feet within minutes of that.”

She said that heavy rain, high water levels in the river, and soaked ground were factors in the flooding in October, but said some of it was down to a lack of maintenance in Midleton and issues such as blocked drains.

She also pointed out that the river levels had risen throughout November and December, a time when there was very heavy rain, giving rise to further fears of repeated flooding.

“We had an awful lot of rain through November and December and the river levels were rising dramatically and on New Year’s Day there was a real concern around Midleton and Castlemartyr, that the river was going to flood again.”

The reason for the petition is put simply by Ms Stromsoe: “The people of East Cork feel they’re being let down by Government and council — no one is helping them, no one cares. That’s not being dramatic, that’s the way it is, we’re trying to make some noise and make them listen.”

COUNCIL RESPONSE

CORK County Council has responded to the assertion that the people of East Cork feel they’re being let down and said in a statement that it has “been actively expediting interim measures to mitigate flood risk in Midleton”.

“Progress in recent weeks has included significant landowner and stakeholder engagement, including meetings with elected representatives, business group representatives, residents’ associations and landowners,” it said in a statement.

The council pointed out that it had published a report on the impact of Storm Babet in December.

Among the other indicators of progress the council detailed was the appointment of a site investigation contractor to inform the planning and detailed design of the scheme as well as some of the interim works. “The site investigation works are imminent,” the council spokesperson said.

A topographical surveying contractor was also appointed and those works are ‘substantially complete’.

Tree stumps were removed from the channel at Moore’s Bridge on December 19 to improve the capacity of the river, a river level gauge was installed at Tír Cluan bridge in December and additional gauges are to be installed at the Lidl Bridge and the pedestrian bridge in the Peoples’ Park this month.

A drone survey has been completed to identify blockages in the river channel and the council is seeking a derogation to clear debris and gravel from the channel.

The council said it was engaging actively with landowners in relation to the removal of privately owned bridges and had also arranged for the removal of vegetation to further improve the river’s capacity, work which is due to take place this month.

“Cork County Council will be engaging shortly with residents in areas liable to frequent flooding to discuss flood mitigation options where appropriate,” the council spokesperson said.

“Cork County Council is obliged to assess whether individual interim measures will require statutory consent / will be subject to statutory approval processes in advance of implementation, and to undertake engineering analysis.

“Such assessments must be considered on a case-by-case basis to ensure regulatory compliance, satisfy funding requirements and help ensure it does not exacerbate flooding elsewhere.

“The delivery of proposed interim measures will be subject to resources and funding availability, about which the council continues to engage with the OPW and Government departments.

“Storm Babet had countywide impacts and Cork County Council continues to work to restore roads/bridges throughout the county while assessing and initiating flood defences where appropriate and practicable to do so.”