"A Death Trap": Mayo pier safety under spotlight after slipway scare
The Grainne Uaile Sub Aqua Club was captured on video struggling to maintain control of a boat and trailer on the algae-covered slipway during a training launch.
Locals in North Mayo are demanding urgent action over dangerous slipway conditions at Kilcummin Pier following a harrowing incident involving a search and rescue diving team.
The footage, filmed by Chris Commons, quickly spread on social media — though Commons was quick to clarify he had not shared it publicly himself.
"While this is my video, I was not the person who shared it publicly," Commons said. "It was originally sent privately to highlight the dangerous condition of the slipway used by one of our main search and rescue crews during launches for training and emergency callouts."
Commons confirmed that although the slipway had been cleaned on March 31, the tide had not been fully out at the time, leaving a significant amount of algae below the waterline. The experienced driver, he noted, had spent over an hour assessing the slip before attempting the launch. "Despite the trailer sliding, the driver did an excellent job keeping it straight and maintaining control throughout."
The incident has reignited calls for more frequent and more effective maintenance of the pier. Councillor Michael Loftus raised the matter at a meeting of the Ballina Municipal District, where he was informed the slipway had last been cleaned on March 30. He argued that was not nearly enough.
"We're now starting a diving season, and boating season, swimming season, so really, even if anyone's walking down that slipway, there's been cases where people have lost their footing and have got seriously injured, hitting their head," Cllr Loftus said. "It's a death trap in one way."
He pointed to practices in Donegal and Galway, where slipways are cleaned every six weeks, as a model Mayo should follow.
Carol Commons, who made history last September as the first person from Connacht to cross the North Channel, uses Kilcummin Pier daily and said conditions have long been treacherous. "We use the steps at Kilcummin Pier every day, but I just don't use the slip, because everyone that goes down falls," she said, describing having to descend the steps facing the wall, gripping the rail with both hands, to avoid slipping.
She also raised the question of liability, saying she had sought clarity from the council on whether locals could clean the slipway themselves, and was told the liability would fall on whoever carried out the work.
The debate has taken on a deeply personal dimension for Joanna McNulty, whose father was killed in a pier tragedy at Belderrig twelve weeks ago. McNulty criticised both the state of the slipway and what she described as unfair online abuse directed at the sub aqua team.
"These emergency services don't get to choose the conditions they have to launch in when their services are required — as they didn't on the night of my dad's accident," she said. "I watched them put their lives in danger due to the hazardous conditions of the slipway so that we could get my dad back."
McNulty was also clear about where responsibility lies. "This is not a publicly owned slipway — it's owned by Mayo County Council, and the responsibility is not on the locals to ensure its upkeep."
She dismissed criticism of the diving team online as misinformed, noting the video showed only a fraction of what took place. "The sub aqua team were there for over an hour beforehand assessing the scene," she said. "The comments and the abuse that they're getting on Facebook and on social media is really, really uncalled for."
Chris Commons echoed the call for a straightforward solution. "These piers get used all year round," he said. "Maintain the slipways — that is the answer."
Mayo County Council told The Mayo News that “Kilcummin Pier was cleaned on the 31st March within an appropriate tidal window, which allowed for the effective and complete cleaning of the slipway.”
The local authority commenced its annual programme of cleaning and maintenance of piers and harbours in March. The programme runs through to September each year and is delivered across the county’s extensive coastal infrastructure network, with available funding prioritised to ensure the most effective and impactful use of resources.
The Council said that “the timing of slipway cleaning works is carefully coordinated with tidal conditions. Cleaning is typically carried out on a receding tide, progressing from the top of the slipway downwards to maximise effectiveness within the available window.”
As part of this programme, approximately 50 slipways along the Mayo coastline were cleaned during the late March to early April period, with all works scheduled to align with suitable tidal conditions.
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