DUNES FIRE ‘DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN’

ILLEGAL ENCAMPMENTS CONCERN

THE fire which destroyed a large section of dunes in Curracloe last summer, was ‘a disaster waiting to happen’, Fine Gael councillor Jim Moore told a meeting of Wexford Borough District Council.

Cllr. Moore was highlighting the problem of illegal encampments in coastal areas and asked the local authority what was being done to counteract the problem.

‘We saw what happened in Curracloe - that was a disaster waiting to happen,’ he said.

Senior engineer Gerry Forde said the local authority is ‘very concerned’ about illegal encampments.

‘They are causing problems in a number of areas around the county and the local authority is working to counteract it.

An ‘engineering solution’ is being adopted in some areas through the erection of barriers and while a barrier had been erected in front of the toilets in Curracloe, it is not possible to do it in the main car park. A barrier has been erected at the car park in Rosslare Strand.

‘It’s a serious issue,’ said Mr. Forde, promising that he would return to a meeting in the New Year with some more ideas.

He said one idea that was being looked at was the presence of voluntary wardens who would monitor activity in seaside areas. But he stressed that they would not be required to approach illegal campers, only to report breaches to the local authority.

The engineer said thefts from parked cars are another problem in coastal areas. There have been 55 car break-ins this year and two-thirds of them were in the Curracloe/Ballineskar area.