Significant rise in county Longford water outages damaging local economy

Water outages and disruptions in county Longford this year have increased steadily by a substantial 74% and it is costing local businesses thousands of euro and damaging the local economy.

The data shows that there were 118 water outages between January 1 and November 5, 2024.

That compares to 69 in 2023 in the county.

Uisce Éireann confirmed there were 96 water outages in 2022, 108 in 2021, 76 in 2020, 118 in 2019 with 167 in 2018.
Cllr Paul Ross said, "The big issue at the moment is between Ballymahon and Carrickboy and then there is also a water main on the way into Legan village that regularly bursts.”

He added, "That water main, particularly around the Doory area in Carrickedmond is probably bursting once a week these days."

Cllr Pat O'Toole remarked, “"My house was nearly always affected if there was an outage so it was easy enough (to take note). We had 17 outages from January until December 2023, with most occurring at weekends, which has a big impact on households, farms and businesses.”

Water outages and disruptions in county Longford this year have increased steadily by a substantial 74% and it is costing local businesses thousands of euro and damaging the local economy.

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The data, provided to the Longford Leader following a Freedom of Information request to Uisce Éireann, shows that there were 118 water outages between January 1 and November 5, 2024.

That compares to 69 in 2023 in the county, however, the water utility said they were unable to provide a breakdown of the locations.

The details confirmed there were 96 water outages in 2022, 108 in 2021, 76 in 2020, 118 in 2019 with 167 in 2018.
This year's total number of outages is set to be the highest since 2018 and significantly higher than the average number of outages during the past five years (75 on average annually).

There were three boil water notices since 2018 in county Longford with two in 2019 and one recorded in 2020 and 2021.
Local representatives Councillor Pat O'Toole and Councillor Paul Ross have criticised the national water utility.

Cllr Ross stressed that a lengthy delay to replace the water mains from Ballymahon to Carrickboy is causing huge disruption.
"The big issue at the moment is between Ballymahon and Carrickboy and then there is also a water main on the way into Legan village that regularly bursts," he said. "That water main, particularly around the Doory area in Carrickedmond is probably bursting once a week these days."

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Cllr Ross stressed that problem is probably causing the most annoyance because it can affect Ballymahon, Edgeworthstown, Keenagh and Legan back as far as Abbeyshrule with up to six thousand people affected.

"I get regular phone calls and messages every time there is a water outage and they are all saying where is the water going," he said. "That Carrickboy reservoir covers Ballymahon back to Edgeworthstown and that section of water main is particularly porous."

Cllr Ross insisted they were given a commitment that work was scheduled to begin replacing that water main in February 2023 but unfortunately that has not happened.

It is understood from speaking to numerous sources there is an issue and a difference in opinion between Uisce Éireann/ Irish Water and Center Parcs over the delivery of that pipeline.

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Another factor is traffic management issues and in relation to a road closure on the secondary N55 route between Ballymahon and Carrickedmond football pitch and debate over how long it would be closed for and possible diversions.

There was a recent water outage from Friday, November 1 until Saturday, November 2 that affected thousands of householders in the Ballymahon and Legan areas.

Meanwhile, Cllr Pat O'Toole said he contacted Irish Water on numerous occasions last year after he took note of every outage.
The Fianna Fáil representative said 90% of the bursts occur on the Ballymahon to Carrickboy stretch of road and the main concern is the impact it is having on householders and businesses.

"My house was nearly always affected if there was an outage so it was easy enough (to take note). We had 17 outages from January until December 2023, with most occurring at weekends, which has a big impact on households, farms and businesses," he said. "People are ultimately just hugely frustrated by the amount of times this is happening."

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Cllr Ross and Cllr O'Toole said they were unclear why the Uisce Éireann Ballymahon to Carrickboy project had been delayed. However, sources have said one bone of contention is connected to costs.

One source said: "I don't think Center Parcs were too happy with the amount of money they paid when they were setting up initially and the service they subsequently received from Irish Water/ Uisce Éireann."

One publican in south Longford, who did not want to be named, said he has been adversely affected multiple times -and three times in an eight week period -and it is a very frustrating for businesses.

"It nearly always seems to happen at the weekends on Saturdays and Sundays. On a Sunday we would usually start at about 11.30am but recently we had to make a decision not to open," he said. " We did not get up and running until 4pm and we had to ring a lot of families who were having family gatherings and events and ask them to reschedule or postpone."

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The publican said a water service is a basic requirement and there should be a reliable service but there are "continuously big bursts here, there and everywhere and I'm sure they are spending a fortune fixing it".

Uisce Éireann acknowledged the problems in county Longford and confirmed the Ballymahon to Carrickboy water mains project is currently at final design stage.

"Regrettably, there have been recent network bursts impacting the water supply to Ballymahon. Uisce Éireann acknowledge and regret the inconvenience and we would like to assure customers that when bursts occur, water services crews are immediately dispatched to carry out repair works as soon as possible," she added.

Uisce Éireann said some repairs can be complex due to the location and the presence of other underground services.

The spokeswoman stated improvement works have been carried out across the county several "important initiatives" aimed at providing a more reliable Longford water supply, including Ballymahon and its surrounding areas are being progressed.

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"To reduce the disruptions in the longer term, a project to replace a large section of water main that is prone to frequent bursts and outages it at final design stage, further stages will be required and are subject to budgetary and statutory approvals," she added.