A delegation of engineers, Council officials and a representative from Irish Water visited Cape Clear recently to see for themselves the state of the roads on the island.
A DELEGATION of engineers, Council officials and a representative from Irish Water visited Cape Clear recently to see for themselves the state of the roads on the island.
The subject was raised recently at a meeting of the West Cork Municipal District, particularly by Cllrs Mary Hegarty (FG) and Joe Carroll (FF), who called for the road network to be restored following the replacement of the island’s water mains.
Area engineer Ruth O’Brien explained that Irish Water had a contract to replace the water mains system on the island and that the roads would be re-instated.
Schull area engineer Sarah Sinnott pointed out that tarmac had been delivered to the island and that a sub-contractor was pricing the job, whilst the Council’s senior executive officer, Mac Dara O h-Icí said he was confident of ‘a positive outcome.’
Cllr Hegarty said she had received numerous phone calls and representations from members of the island community seeking to have the roads put back in order and Cllr Carroll made the point: ‘When people from Cape Clear ring you, you have to answer because they are very persistent.’
Islander Seamus O’Driscoll confirmed to The Southern Star that the roads have been made ‘usable again with various temporary repairs carried out.’
However, he said the islanders are waiting for the roads, and the drains beneath them, to be fully reinstated.
‘If they are not reinstated, the newly resurfaced roads will be destroyed in the first heavy rains and cause flooding,’ he said.
Mr O’Driscoll said the former chairman and manager of Comharchumann Chléire Teo, Micheál Ó Céadagáin, had prepared a chart showing the locations of the various drains and the chart was presented to the representatives of Cork County Council and Irish Water.
Mr O’Driscoll said: ‘Some of the drains involved are old stone-built drains from days gone by and are not always apparent to an operator of modern heavy machinery, so special care should be taken to identify these drains and replace them as the works go on.’
