Councillors call for action following severe flooding in Thurles town at the weekend

Councillors at Thurles Municipal District are calling for a plan to be made to tackle flooding in Thurles town.

The call follows severe flash flooding that hit the town on Sunday night. Cllr Seamus Hanafin raised the incident at Monday’s sitting of the Templemore-Thurles Municipal District council.

He said it was very easy to blame Irish Water, but it is a 40-year-old legacy issue from Tipperary County Council.

He said it was ‘appalling’ for those who had to deal with it.

Cllr Sean Ryan said it was ‘soul-destroying’ for those affected. He said this was the third incident in 18 months and that it was clear the infrastructure needed replacing.

Both councillors called for a plan to be put forward to deal with the issue.

"It’s been going on too long,"

"The infrastructure is simply not good enough in that part of the town," said Cllr Ryan.

Several other councillors supported their call.

Cllr Jim Ryan said he was on the street that night and that it ‘was like something from a film.’

He shared images of the flood on his Facebook page on Monday.

Cllr Ryan said businesses are telling him they cannot go to their insurance companies for fear of risking their cover. He added that the fire service was prevented by a policy from helping despite having the equipment to clear the water.

"They are sitting at home dying to help people but are not allowed to," said Cllr Ryan.

He has called for this policy to be changed so action can be taken in the future. He also said it wasn’t just a town or business issue but that flooding causes raw sewage to be pumped into the river.

"How anyone can stand over raw sewage pumped into the Suir when there is a flood is beyond me," said Cllr Ryan.

He called the situation disgraceful and hypocritical. "It’s wrong, and people and businesses won’t put up with it, and I don't blame them," said Cllr Ryan.

Councillor Noel Coonan said he supported his colleagues in Thurles and called for funding to be provided.

"In this day and age, people and shopkeepers deserve better," said Cllr Coonan.

Roscrea Cllr Michael Smith said his 'heart goes out to businesses and called on the council to 'step up.'

He also said it is not good enough that the fire brigade are prevented from providing assistance.

Cllr Micheál Lowry said the council had given Irish Water ‘the benefit of the doubt’at last week’s vote, but a plan now had to be put in place. He called for roads to be blocked off when heavy rain is forecast.

A spokesperson for Tipperary County Council says they cannot carry out works on the pipes in Thurles because they are the responsibility of Irish Water.

They say the issue is one of infrastructure capacity and that they have spoken to Irish Water in relation to this.

Crews had cleared gullies it was claimed but this only a short-term solution. The spokesperson said the difficulty came down to the combined sewer and wastewater system.

The system is designed to overflow, but with heavy rain, there is not enough time for it to drain away before the system fills back up.

The spokesperson said there needed to be an ‘immediate response plan.’

They called on councillors to raise the issue at this week’s workshop with Irish water.

"It has to be a priority issue," said the spokesperson.

Tipperary councillor welcomes €100,000 in funding for four local community centres

Martin Browne

Separately in a statement issued on Monday, TD Martin Browne has said he is raising the issue with the Minister for the Environment.

"The flooding overnight in Thurles has had a severe impact on local residents and businesses.

“This is an ongoing issue in Thurles and last night’s flooding showed how quickly severe flooding can happen.

"This issue has been raised with both the Council and Irish Water previously; however, no action has been taken.

“The result of this has been residents have been left to fend for themselves during heavy rains.

"I have raised the issue with Irish Water, and the Minister for the Environment as the recent flooding also saw raw sewage entering the river Suir," said Mr Browne.

He asked anyone affected by the flooding to contact his office.