This article is from page 2 of the 2006-08-25 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 2 JPG
CLARE County Council has apologised to residents in Shannon after supply problems left homes in the area without water.
Homes in Shannon were left without water for much of last Tuesday as contractors carried out repair work to metering valves.
Executive Engineer Liam Murphy explained engineers encountered problems with a valve, meaning a wider catchment area than anticipated was affected and the work had lasted longer than expected.
“Repair work was being be carried out as part of ongoing maintenance of the system.
“It was planned that only a small area would be affected and notice had been given. It was then discovered that one of the valves wouldn’t hold and we had no choice, but to extend the work. There was terrible rain that day and the workers were out all day fixing the problem.”
Mr Murphy apologised to locals and added that maintenance work will continue. He said the project was roughly 50 per cent complete
“I apologise to all those homes and businesses affected. We would always look at these works from a strategic viewpoint, but you can never be 100 per cent sure. In these situations you can’t be alarmist and go around notifying every house in Shannon.”
Prior notification of the shortages were given to three local businesses.
Notices to the general public was given on local radio, but this method has been criticised as ineffective.
Shannon Councillor Patricia McCarthy (Ind) said that many residents in Shannon would not have been aware of the shortages since they don’t listen to local radio .
“The Council would normally advertise notice of these works on radio, but a lot of people in Shannon wouldn’t listen to it.
“I don’t think the method of notification was adequate enough. You can’t anticipate and plan for these kind of interruptions, but there should be a better way of letting people know.”
Shannon Councillor Gerry Flynn (Ind) was sharply critical of the Council saying that he along with local residents had been kept in the dark over the problems.
“What really annoyed me is that they didn’t contact me and they didn’t let people know in an adequate manner. I was getting calls all day from people who had no water.
“This caused major problems for people with young children and disabilities. There was people still in the shower when the water cut out.”
Councillor Flynn also criticised the fact that local businesses were given advance notification, but locals were not.