Climate change is on our doorstep
Tipperary is facing significant challenges to tackle the impacts of climate change that is now evident in towns, villages and rural areas of the county, local councillors have acknowledged, after learning of a weather incident of “biblical proportions” in a rural area close to Nenagh.
Like the rest of the county, residents of Kilmastulla were celebrating Tipperary’s victory over Cork in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final on Sunday, July 20 - but then that night the heavens opened and emergency services were in involved in an all out battle to stop seven local houses from being engulfed by floods as the Kilmastulla River burst its banks.
“The downpour I witnessed that night was of biblical proportions,” said Tipperary County Council’s District Engineer, Barry Murphy who was present at the scene and worked for hours to try to stop the rapidly rising water levels enter houses.
Councillors attending the September meeting of the Nenagh Municipal District authority were told by Mr Murphy that one house was flooded, while six others were “impacted” by the downpour that caused water levels in the local river to rise swiftly and overflow onto the surrounding floodplain.
ROOT OF THE FLOODING
Mr Murphy said that at the root of the flooding were issues with regard to the drainage of the Kilmastulla River, but he revealed that tackling the problem was currently outside the remit of Tipperary County Council.
“The solution to this is outside the council’s responsibility at this stage,” he said. A cost-effective scheme needed to be implemented to prevent similar incidents occurring in the future.
The issue was initially raised by the Cathaoirleach of the municipality, Cllr Phyll Bugler, who said she had never seen anything like the rain that fell in Kilmastulla on the night. “It was a massive downpour,” she declared.
She warned that the local community could be facing similar challenges in the future if action was not taken to deal with the drainage of the river.
Cllr Bugler said a local landowner was restricted in taking preventative action due to measures in place to protect fish species in the river.
She said the council would have to take its case to the Minister with responsibility flood relief, Kevin Boxer Moran, to try to find a solution. “We will all have to work together with the Office of Public Work to help the people living in these houses because on the night the floods were four feet high.”
MINISTER SOUGHT
Cllr Bugler added that council staff and emergency crews were present in Kilmastulla from 11pm to 4am on the night as they battled to stop the water engulfing the seven houses. “We have to get the minister down to visit the site and find a solution because this is very unfair to the residents of the seven houses.”
She said the homeowners were unable to insure their properties against flooding and were now “living from night to night waiting for the next flood”. Cllr John Caroll said concerns had been raised many years ago about houses being built on flood plains in the Ballina area. Problems were happening now because warnings were not heeded in the past. “The Kilmastulla is a slow flowing river at the best of times.
We have to increase the flow of the river,” he said. Cllr Fiona Bonffield recalled the night of the flooding. She said she was driving home to Newport after attending the All Ireland hurling final and recalled that the level of rainfall she witnessed was “absolutely dangerous”.
She said more funding was necessary to tackle the challenges posed by climate change, “because what we are dealing with here is climate change”.
Cllr Bugler then interjected to say that in her 20 years as a local representative dealing with flooding issues, she had never seen anything like the floods in Kilmastulla on the night.