Still no word from OPW on Fermoy flooding

Local councillors and business people are still awaiting a report from the Office of Public Works (OPW) on the flooding which occurred at Brian Boru Square, Fermoy in February 2021.

At the meeting of the Northern Committee of Cork County Council on Tuesday, Cllr William O’Leary and Cllr Noel McCarthy asked the council if they have received any reply from the OPW on the matter.

Cork County Council have still not received the report. Following news of this, the councillors asked that another letter to be sent to the OPW requesting the report.

TheAvondhu contacted the OPW regarding the matter, to which a spokesperson stated that following the flood event, Cork County Council, in cooperation with the OPW, have been undertaking a highly detailed assessment of the causes of the flood event.

“Cork County Council is preparing a comprehensive report and intends to submit it to the OPW. When received, the OPW will review prior to its finalisation. This Flood Incident Report will detail the flood event, causes of the flooding, lessons learned from the event and what actions are required to mitigate a future recurrence of this event.

“The majority of the investigative work is complete and a number of interim measures have already been put in place with more upgrades to be carried out subject to the final report recommendations. Cork County Council and the OPW continue to collaborate and co-operate closely to progress the above report,” the spokesperson said.

“IT’S JUST NOT GOOD ENOUGH”

Those affected by the flood in Fermoy continue to wait for the official report and remain unable to complete insurance proceedings until such time as a report is issued.

One affected individual claimed that they are being ‘fobbed off’ as the process has been ongoing for 14 months now.

“We’re fed up with the whole set-up. We want finalised answers. They have been dragging this on for fourteen months now and it’s not acceptable. It’s just not good enough,” the individual said.

In early February, Cork County Council and OPW confirmed to TheAvondhu that the report was being prepared by Cork County Council in collaboration with OPW. “The report is due to be completed within the next 1-2 months,” an OPW spokesperson said at the time.

At the March meeting of the Northern Committee, elected members had been informed by Cork County Council officials that the report was ‘imminent’. Cork County Council, at the time, were said to be finalising the report with the Office of Public Works and it was then expected that the report would be complete by the end of March.

The wait goes on.