South Galway flood relief project won’t begin until late 2023 at the earliest

IT will be at least another two years before there is any prospect of machinery moving in to begin vital flood alleviation works in South Galway – a problem that has impacted on hundreds of acres of land.

More than 25 years after the area was described as a disaster zone following floods that resulted in homes having to be evacuated and animals rescued by boats, the situation is still critical, according to local representatives.

And it has been revealed this week that there is no prospect of any flood relief measures taking place in the Tarmon and Kiltiernan areas, amongst others, near Gort within the next couple of years.

Various reports that were due to be published last year – while public consultations were also planned but Covid has been blamed for these not materialising.

It now hoped that these reports will be available in the latter half of 2022 and that a final design will then be made, but works will not commence until late 2023 at the earliest.

Even if flood relief works do start, which ultimately will result in rising waters being released out to sea, they will take a number of years to complete.

Local public representative and engineer Cllr. Joe Byrne (FG) said that the farmers and residents of South Galway are still at risk of flooding for at least four, if not five years.

Few in the area will ever forget the scenes of boats being deployed to rescue local residents, their belongings and farm animals, when the flooding situation reached crisis point back in the mid-1990s.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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