Flood relief funds announced for Galway are to be welcomed but do little to allay the fears of some who are worried about further hardship this winter if works are not completed quickly, according to Senator Fidelma Healy Eames.
The Galway West Fine Gael senator said that residents in affected areas were concerned about the timescale involved in carrying out the works, with some areas left vulnerable to flooding until at least next year, while others could be left waiting years for flood relief.
“The announcement of €300,000 for flood relief works for Moneymore, Oranmore, will be met with a sigh of relief as works are set to commence this September,” she said. “In Claregalway, where an €8 million package has been designated for flood work, minor works are to begin in advance of the major projects, which will not commence until summer 2011 — a fact that has not been lost on local communities. Furthermore, residents will be mindful of the fact that these start dates are largely dependent on bureaucracy and planning issues to be dealt with, including the possibility of appeals, and they will remain anxious until the final approval is in place and the work is actually complete.
“The situation in Carnmore, which has been promised €250,000, however, is far more serious as relief work will not be carried out there until the work in Claregalway has been completed, which could be many years down the road. This is completely unacceptable and a very worrying scenario as three families’ homes in Carnmore were totally devastated in last year’s floods.”
Sen Healy Eames said a flood alert and monitoring system is vital to protect people from the type of destruction caused by last year’s deluge.
“A badly needed national flood alert and an advanced monitoring system for flooding, as proposed by Fine Gael, is essential in helping people to protect themselves in the future,” she said. “This would assist in communicating directly with potentially affected people through a variety of mediums such as telephone messaging, media alerts to action, and through other methods such as loudhailer and siren systems. In addition, a well co-ordinated response system is critical at national and local level.
“The Minister must ensure that the people of Galway are not subjected to the same horrors they experienced last year,” the Oranmore-based senator added. “The announcement of funds are welcome but still leave the safety and security of others in serious doubt this coming winter. In cases like this I believe the Minister should be able to override unreasonable objections in favour of protecting people's homes and livelihoods.”
