‘We just want to feel safe’ — Calls for action as injuries mount on Navan estate footpaths
Residents of a Navan estate are planning to stage a protest at the next district meeting amid ongoing concerns over the dangerous condition of local footpaths.
The move follows a recent incident in which a woman suffered multiple injuries after tripping on an uneven surface within the estate — one of a number of accidents reported there in recent years.
The woman sustained injuries to her face, knees and hands in the fall. In a separate incident, another resident fractured her wrist after tripping on a damaged path.
Bernadette Flood (67) said her friend was on her way to visit her home on Priory Drive on March 25 when the fall occurred.
“At 9:30 in the morning, she was walking into the estate when she was thrown completely flat out on a path that is risen there,” she said.
“Both of her knees were badly cut, one of her hands was bruised, her glasses dug in to the bridge of her nose, she had a black eye and her jaw was hurt.”
“She was very shook by the whole thing, nobody was there to help her up.”
Ms Flood said the incident was not isolated and described the situation as an ongoing safety hazard.
“I was infuriated because it was not the first time someone has gotten hurt. It has been clearly highlighted on numerous occasions as a safety issue and an ongoing hazard.”
She said it is the “responsibility” of the council to take the estate in charge — a process whereby a local authority assumes responsibility for roads, footpaths, services and public areas within a housing development.
A resident of more than 25 years, Ms Flood said locals feel they are being “ignored”.
“We’ve asked for a playground, we’ve asked for a community centre but nothing has been done, but this is a basic right for anybody. You should be able to go out and have a safe environment and walk on the footpath.”
“The current state of the footpaths is just disgraceful and we are just being ignored,” she added.
“My concern is that do we have to wait for a fatality? Imagine if a mother with small children was walking there and the mother fell and a child ran out onto the road… I dread the thought of something like that.”
“We just want to keep safe, we are only asking to feel safe on our own footpaths.”
Sue McCarthy (38) said she fractured her wrist in a fall in the estate five years ago and that conditions have not improved since.
“I don’t live in Priory Estate myself, a friend of mine does, she was minding my kids so I was going to collect them when I fell,” she said.
“My foot hit the uneven footpath and I went down. When I fell, I put out my hand to save myself and my wrist took the full force of me hitting the ground. I was in a cast for three weeks and I’m still having trouble with my wrist now. When I do anything, my wrist and my hand swell up.”
Ms McCarthy said she has avoided walking in the estate since the incident. Having previously suffered a brain injury in 2003, she said the fall could have had far more serious consequences.
“I’m afraid of falling again. It completely knocked my confidence when I’m out walking.”
“The footpaths need to be sorted, they need to be fixed and levelled out.”
At the February meeting of Navan Municipal District, Independent councillor Alan Lawes raised the issue of when Priory Estate in Johnstown would be taken in charge by the local authority.
He was informed that a valid taking-in-charge application was received in June 2021, but the process has yet to be completed, with the estate’s roads and footpaths continuing to deteriorate.
In a written response, Meath County Council said it was unable to provide a timeframe but would seek to expedite the process.
Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Lawes had described the response as “generic” and expressed frustration at the lack of progress.
He said conditions in the estate have worsened, with potholes and damaged footpaths posing a risk to residents.
Cllr Lawes also confirmed that a protest is planned outside the next meeting of Navan Municipal District on April 22.
A spokesperson for Meath County Council said the local authority had received a valid Taking in Charge request from residents of The Priory in Johnstown.
“A number of site inspections have been carried out to identify the remedial works required to bring the development to an appropriate standard required under the planning act for the estate to be taken in charge.”
“While Meath County Council is not in a position to progress the take charge of this estate at present, the Taking in Charge of estates remains a significant area of ongoing work for the local authority.”
“To date this year, the Council has taken charge of 12 estates and continues to actively progress others, including this estate, which will be considered for Taking in Charge as soon as it is feasible to do so,” they added.