Emergency funding required to save Rosslare Strand beach as Kelly’s Hotel finds itself in the eye of the storm

By Simon Bourke, Wexford People

One of Co Wexford’s premier tourist destinations has found itself caught in the eye of the storm as the county continues to battle coastal erosion. With large swathes of the county’s coastline being washed away with each passing winter, Kelly’s Hotel in Rosslare Strand is now under threat, with the last remaining section of its adjoining beach expected to disappear in the coming months.

The problems in Rosslare Strand extend far beyond the confines of the hotel however, with the entire beach now reduced to stones, making it impassable for walkers.

While an exxensive coastal erosion and flood relief scheme is at the preliminary design stage and is expected to commence in Q4 2028, with substantial completion in Q3 2030, there are fears that those works will come too late.

With that in mind, Councillors Lisa McDonald and Ger Carthy submitted a motion at the March meeting of Wexford County Council (WCC) calling upon the Office of Public Works (OPW) “to immediately prepare and implement a scheme of emergency works to protect Rosslare Strand from the encroachment of the sea”.

“It is absolutely abject down there,” said Cllr McDonald, “this is the jewel in the crown of Wexford tourism, the place where people come on their holidays; it needs immediate assistance, this cannot wait. The application to install defences is not expected to be fully complete until 2031, we cannot wait that long.

"Next winter is going to take the beach that’s holding Kelly’s Hotel up, you cannot walk the beach now, there’s a large section of coastline which requires work – we need emergency funding now.”

The motion received support from Cllr Pip Breen who said that, given the issues across the county in areas like Courtown and Morriscastle, a “comprehensive scheme for entire coastline” was now required.

For Cllr Biddy Walsh the fear went beyond the coastline and right into the village itself.

“The village of Rosslare Strand is adjacent to the water, and that water is going to come in there; there is no beach,” she said. “This is a densely populated part of Wexford and it’s in an awful state.”