Cork village deluged in Storm Babet still awaiting vital flood-mitigation move from Council

By Peter McCarthy, Corkman

An East Cork TD has called for work on the flood relief scheme for Mogeely to be accelerated as it emerged that Cork County Council has yet to hire a consultant to undertake the necessary surveys.

Deputy Pat Buckley received the information in reply to a Dail question this week. The departmental response said that the council is in the process of appointing a consultant to undertake a detailed programme of physical surveys to inform the hydrological and hydraulic modelling of the catchment upstream of the village of Mogeely.

Mogeely was one of several East Cork communities to be flooded during Storm Babet in October 2023. A study to explore flood mitigation measures for the village has been granted funding of €116,235.

“This delay in filling this void will lead to more delays and prolong the suffering of those families and businesses living in fear of flooding and any delays in urgency must be addressed immediately. I call on Cork County Council and the government to work together to move this process forward as fast as possible so meaningful flood relief works can start as soon as possible,” Deputy Pat Buckley said.

The departmental response said that to date the OPW has approved funding of some €7.3m for over 55 projects in County Cork under the Minor Works Scheme. This funding includes €321,103 for flood relief projects in Castlemartyr, Killeagh, Mogeely, and Rathcormac.

In November residents from those communities attended the Oireachtas Petitions Committee to call for urgent action to expedite the relief efforts. Mogeely resident Vivienne Jeffers told the committee that the small East Cork village “lives in fear every time it rains.”

“I can still see the brown dirty water rushing through my house. We lost our children's baby photographs, the door frame where I marked their growing heights, the sense of safety that makes a house a home. But what terrifies me most is what happens if my luck runs out next time. I can't bear the thought of losing my children, not to water and certainly not to government delay and inaction,” Ms Jeffers said.