Flood-relief funding confirmed for south Mayo

Flood-relief funding confirmed by Hayes for south Mayo


Trevor Quinn

Minister Brian Hayes has confirmed that €80,000 has been set aside to alleviate the potential for serious flooding in the Hollymount and Roundfort region of south Mayo.
Mayo Fine Gael TDs John O’Mahony and Michael Ring met with Minister Hayes when he visited the county last Thursday, and they have revealed that work will start in May of next year. Cllrs Patsy O’Brien, Michael Bourke and Tom Connolly also attended the meeting.
“This work cannot be done quickly enough,” said Deputy O’Mahony. “I understand that the National Parks and Wildlife Service will have its environmental survey completed in January and that work will commence in May.”
He added: “This flooding problem has been ongoing now for years and local people who are directly affected have had to put up with massive disruption on an annual basis. It is not uncommon for houses to be completely cut off. Now, we know that the money has been set aside and that work will be finally carried out.”
Deputy Ring said he was relieved that this work would commence as quickly as possible. He stated, “I have put forward a strong case to both the OPW officials and the Minister in relation to getting this work started. It is a very important project and I emphasised this very strongly to both the Minister and the OPW officials.”
Councillor Patsy O’Brien also welcomed the news. He said he was optimistic that the work carried out by the OPW would be to the highest standards, and he made reference to similar flood relief works which was carried out successfully near Blessington in Co Wicklow.
Cllr O’Brien said that while there was no cast iron guarantee that flooding would not effect a minority of houses in the Hollymount and Roundfort areas in the future, the works would definitely alleviate problems for road users and would be extremely beneficial in the long-term.