This article is from page 4 of the 2009-12-01 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
LOCAL authorities remain on alert in Ennis over fears that further floods could be on the way.
While flood waters in Ennis have, in the main receded, and most roads leading to the town have fully re- opened, the forecast of heavy rain- fall and expected peak tides later this week has led Clare County Council to issue a severe flood alert for all parts of the county.
Speaking yesterday, Town Man- ager, Ger Dollard said that while the situation in Ennis has improved considerably since the weekend, there remained a risk of flooding.
Highlighting the difficulties caused in Dublin and Kildare by sudden bursts of heavy rainfall, Mr Dollard said water levels in the River Fergus may rise with tides ex- pected to hit peak levels on Thurs- day, Friday and Saturday.
“The forecast is for rain later in the week and so the potential is there for floods,” he said.
“As we saw in Dublin, it can so easily happen. We have been doing a lot of work in terms of pumping water out and putting up flood de- fences, so we hope that if there is further heavy rain, the system will be able to cope,” added Mr Dol- lard.
“We would urge people to be vigilant, to take necessary pre-cau- tions and to have a flooding plan in place.”
Commenting on the local author1- ties response to the floods crisis, Mr Dollard said, “The operation was cohesive and everyone associated with it deserves enormous credit.”
27 families remain in temporary accommodation after being forced from their homes by floods.
On Thursday, Ennis Town Council stated that one family had returned to their home and alternative ac- commodation has been identified for a further two families.
Mr Dollard said that flood damage
to some homes has been so exten- sive that some families may not be able to return to them for a number of months.
“Properties are still being in- spected and some will be habitable again fairly soon, we hope. Others will require a few months. There has been some minor damage but in some cases the damage is fairly sig- nificant. Naturally, we want to get people back into their homes in the shortest period possible,” he said.
Mr Dollard explained that the council is working with local auc- tioneers and Ennis Chamber of Commerce to private rented accom- modation for affected families.