Council’sinsurers topayrepairbill
MEATH County Council’s insurance will foot the bill for the damage to the popular boardwalk.
Councillor Paul Bell confirmed that the council’s insurers will pay for the replacement of the pedestrian boardwalk destroyed by fire last week.
“Noting the the extensive damages and the need for the total replacement of the 100 meters of boardwalk which were totally destroyed by the fire, I initiated contact with Council (Meath) to clarify their intentions. What I can confirm is that the board walk is Council property and therefore covered under the Irish Public Bodies insurance. As such it is my clear understanding that the replacement of the valued community amenity will be fully covered by the insurance,’ said Bell.
Bell also confirmed that he raised concerns about the material used in the construction of the boardwalk.
‘While I am satisfied that the boardwalk will be fully replaced and over a short period, I have raised questions about the materials used as video images of the fire demonstrated a high a criminal investigation into the suspected arson attack.
Local groups are calling it ‘a setback, but not the end of the road for the boardwalk’, as efforts to repair the popular amenity will begin immediately, but probably not in time for the forthcoming Fleadh.
Emergency services were alerted to the fire by a member of the public at around 11pm, in what was initially believed to be a grass fire. When members of the Drogheda Fire & Rescue service arrived shortly after, it was discovered the boardwalk had been set alight. intensity blaze and if it had not been for the fast actions of Drogheda Fire Service more damage would have been caused. I have requested that Meath and Louth County Fire Officers would discuss this matter on the basis of public safety,’ he added.
To help wth funding and after a lot of calls from the public, the Boyneside Trail Committee launched a GoFundMe page following the blaze.
‘While we won’t raise anything near what’s needed for the restoration work (that will need to come from the councils and State Agencies), it is a way for the local community to demonstrate how much the boardwalk means to them and their support for the restoration,’ a spokesperson stated..
Almost €9,000 was raised in the days after the blaze. The page is: https://www.gofundme.com/repair
‘ The Boyneside Trail Committee will work hard, on behalf of the community, to keep up the pressure to get the damaged section restored so that this community and tourist amenity can be returned to all those the locals and visitors who enjoy it so much,’ they added.
The blaze could be seen for several miles, including from the Mary McAleese Boyne Valley Bridge on nearby M1 motorway.
Extensive damage was caused to the wooden structure and also to kerbing and phone lines which serve the nearby visitor centre at Oldbridge.
Assessing the damage, members of the Boyneside Trail Committee described the incident as “absolutely devastating”.
“This was a section that was on stilts out over the water and work to reinstate this section of boardwalk will start with removal of the debris, driving new stilts into the riverbed, fitting a new support structure and then construction of a new deck and handrail. The concrete plinth and the road have also been damaged by the fire and will need to be repaired,” committee member Eddie Phelan, who is also a civil and structural engineer, explained.
“The cost of the re-instatement could be up to €200,000 but when started, could be a relatively quick job.”
The Boyneside Trail Committee were formed in 2012, arising from the RTÉ Local Heroes campaign.