THE LATEST assessment of the response to devastating floods in Cork in 2009 highlights an “astonishing refusal” by Government to determine the cause of the flood, according to the solicitor advising affected residents.
Cork solicitor Joe Noonan said that while the findings of the report are helpful, it fails to address the “elephant in the room”: the cause of the flood.
“The fundamental problem with this report is that it’s an investigation into the response [by State agencies]. This points to an astonishing refusal by the Government to commission a report into the cause of the flood,” Mr Noonan said.
This failure was a source of ongoing concern for residents affected by the floods of November 19th, 2009, he said.
The “Review of the Response to Exceptional Severe Weather Events Of 2009-2010”, by the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management, concludes that flood warnings broadcast for the Cork area on the evening of November 19th “were not sufficiently specific to alert many of the people who were at risk to the reality of what was coming”.
Arrangements should be made by local authorities to form severe weather assessment and management teams operating on a 24/7 basis, the review states.
It continues: “An approach based on integrating emergency management in all stages and across all levels needs to be adopted for Ireland.”
Barry Keane, spokesman for residents of the Mardyke area in Cork, where water levels rose to 2m, causing extensive damage to property, said the report contained nothing new.
He said there appeared to be no urgency in dealing with efforts to prevent another devastating flood. He called for levels of water entering the Lee catchment area to be monitored, and the level of water released from the ESB’s Inniscarra Dam adjusted accordingly.
The company released millions of tonnes of water from the dam, 12km west of Cork city, on the night of November 19th, to protect the structure following unprecedented levels of rainfall.
“There has been no change in the ESB’s management of the Inniscarra dam, with the exception of the maximum permitted level of water being lowered by half a meter,” Mr Keane said.
Greg Franklin, a resident of Anne Street, off Washington Street, whose home was extensively damaged in the flood, said he and other residents would pursue their case through their legal representative “to the bitter end” because their livelihoods had been lost.
“I’m paying a huge mortgage on my house but it’s worth nothing, no one would buy it because I can’t get insurance to cover flooding,” he said.
A research report into the flooding by an independent firm of international consultants with engineering expertise is set to complete its work within weeks, Mr Noonan said. “We will be advising our clients about their legal options when it is complete.”