Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
Add Reply
No guarantee' barriers will prevent flooding
Topic Started: November 9 2011, 09:31 PM (236 Views)
Audi-Tek
Member Avatar
Prince
[ *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * ]
No guarantee' barriers will prevent flooding



Athlone Town Council is as prepared as it can be for a flooding event, councillors heard this week, but there are no guarantees the flood defences purchased with OPW funds will be effective.

Despite assurances from the council that the river levels is a metre lower than the highest water level in 2009, the council is making preparations for a repeat event, including the purchase of a vehicle that will help it access homes that have been cut off by flood water and the purchase of flood defences for Iona Villas, The Strand/Wolfe Tone Terrace and The Docks.

However, speaking about the flood barriers, which were purchased with OPW funds, Director of Services for the Athlone area Barry Kehoe said: "There's no guarantee flooding can be prevented. The barriers will prevent the water coming over the walls at The Docks and The Strand but there are various other ways for the water to get in. The whole main drainage system will be inundated. Any water or sewage going down there may not be able to get away. We will deploy pumps but the pumps may not be able to cope. There's no guarantee these barriers will work but it's the best we can do at the moment."

He said again that the Deerpark/Parnell Square area cannot be protected except for the major scheme that is needed but funding will not be made available for this until the CFRAM report is completed in 2015.

"The construction of that embankment would be through a SAC and it would be impossible for us to get planning permission until 2015, they won't let us because the habitats can't be disturbed in case they don't need to be," he explained.

"That is the most worrying aspect of the flooding in town. If it happens we'll be responding in the same way. It wasn't very effective last time and it's unlikely to be any more effective this time," he said.

However, Mr Kehoe also told councillors that the Shannon is still a metre below the 2009 level and said there would have to be a lot of rain before the river would be up at the 2009 level.

Mr Kehoe said the council had also purchased a vehicle that could be used to get through flood waters, which was something it didn't have in 2009 when it had to rely on the army to access homes that had been cut off by flood waters.

He said a leaflet with flooding advice that had been produced by the OPW would be distributed to homes in the next few days.

Cllr Sheila Buckley Byrne (Ind) pointed out that this was a generic leaflet and asked if council phone numbers could be included.

Cllr Gabrielle McFadden (FG) said: "I sincerely hope the OPW hasn't spent money on these leaflets. If money was spent on this it was a waste."

She asked the council executive how much the 2009 flood had cost the council in terms sandbags and overtime, saying in her opinion if this money was kept it could be used for flood defences.

"I cannot accept that we have to wait until 2015. I know from people who are on the river that the water is exceptionally high. We have to protect the people. We have to have a plan and we have to let the people know," she said. "Shane Curran is selling flood protection to the White House. He's from Roscommon, we're in Athlone! There has to be something we can do for people in Parnell and Deerpark, we can't wait."

Labour's Cllr Jim Henson said most of what had to be said had been said by Cllr McFadden. He asked if there was any point in putting flood barriers along The Strand if they were not going to work and the water was going to come up under the wall and asked was the council not better off putting sandbags and pumps in this area.

"We did all we could during the floods but we're prepared now. Can we not put in heavy duty sandbags and pumps?" Cllr Henson asked.

Sinn Féin's Cllr Paul Hogan said he agreed with Cllr McFadden regarding the 2015 report. He said he couldn't believe it in 2009 when he heard it would take six years to complete the report. He asked what role the ESB had to play in this and asked what sort of communication there was between ESB and the council regarding the control of sluice gates. Director of Services Barry Kehoe said the 2015 date for the CFRAM report is set down. He said the flood barriers bought for The Strand and The Docks were similar to the ones Cllr McFadden mentioned but said there were no guarantees with them but the council would try them.

He said the council receives updates twice weekly from the ESB regarding the levels in the Shannon and a five-day forecast, which he said was more than the council had two years ago.

Mr Kehoe added that he didn't know what impact Ardnacrusha had on the levels around Athlone and this wouldn't be known until the 2015 report.

Cllr Kevin 'Boxer' Moran said he would love to shout and roar as the people cannot understand the length of time it takes for the report and asked if CFRAM was running on schedule.

He also pointed out that Ballinasloe didn't have to wait on the CFRAM report as it had received funding and asked where Athlone fitted into this.

He also suggested that the weir wall should be raised, which would mean that up to a foot of water could be held back through controlling the sluice gates and said he worried that when CFRAM was completed there would be no funding for the works.

Cllr McFadden asked if the council could write to the OPW and say how much it cost the council in 2009 and say they want emergency funding.

"We can't wait. We can jump up and down as a council and say we want it. These are people's lives," she said.

Mayor Shaw said he had read a newspaper article at the weekend that suggested that further water could be drained at Parteen Weir and asked if this was possible.

Mr Kehoe said the CFRAM report was on time. He said he wasn't in a position to comment on the Ballinasloe funding as he didn't know anything about it but he would look into it.

"There is environmental sensitivity in the Deerpark area. I can see little enough coming out of a letter to the OPW. The scheme would require planning consent," explained Mr Kehoe.

Cllr McFadden asked if this was because it was designated as a special area of conservation and was told it was.

Cllr Henson said: "When it's flooded it's destroyed anyway."

Cllr McFadden added: "So that's more important than people's lives?"

Mr Kehoe said the council could ask about releasing more water at Parteen Weir.

Cllr Kieran Molloy said that surely if that was a solution it would have been looked at before now.

Town Engineer Alan Kelly explained that if too much water is let out at Parteen Weir it can cause an issue for Limerick City.
Why is cloud 9 so amazing ? What is wrong with cloud 8 ?
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous)
« Previous Topic · Irish Weather Forecast & Discussion · Next Topic »
Add Reply

tm