Longford councillor calls on Uisce Eireann to acquire generators

Councillor Martin Skelly has called on the County Council to ask Uisce Éireann to commission generators to back up the water reservoirs in Longford. He has also asked that a power system be installed to operate these generators. According to Cllr Skelly no such system currently exists within the county.

“We must ensure that we have our water resources working when there is a power outage in the future,” said Cllr Skelly.

The council agreed to write to Uisce Éireann to voice the concerns of their elected members.

“There is only X number of reservoirs in the county,” remarked Cllr Skelly, “There's one in Lanesboro, there is one in Ballymahon and one at Edgeworthstown.”

“They are large, they are large ones and it just doesn’t make sense in the wide earthly world that if the power goes, then the water goes along with it.

“As bad as things are with power gone, it just trebles the overall impact of the inconvenience, not just on people but on animals as well.”

Also Read: Longford's historic 1798 tree brought down by the Storm

The councillor highlighted the importance of bearing in mind that Longford County with a large farming population.

“Longford is a rural County, it depends on water.”

Many companies across the country were prepared with generators in the wake of Storm Éowyn following the “warning”, as the councillor put it, that was Storm Darragh.

“Anyone that’s well organised and coordinated [would have generators],” he remarked, “I think for Irish Water it’s a very simple thing to do.”

The councillor received the good news that the request would be brought to the Dáil.

“Deputy Micheál Carrigy is raising the issue in Dáil Éireann.”

Also Read: Tickets go on sale for St Mel’s Longford musical ‘Me And My Girl’ on Thursday

For Cllr Skelly, his home village of Newtowncashel is still reckoning with losses from Storm Éowyn.

A few businesses and homes in the area have been without broadband since the storm rolled through the county four long weeks ago.

“We’re still waiting for broadband,” he said and he spoke about wires and telephone poles still scattered across the area, “Certain roads around the village, it's dangerous.”

“There's a wire hanging down and it’s hitting every car, a pole is hanging there, it’s broken at the base.

“I have made representations on numerous occasions to the internet providers on the issue of the lack of broadband and the damage that’s on our roads and the damage it could lead to.

“It's beyond me at this stage, and I have gone higher but it’s just not happening and nobody seems to be listening.”

Also Read: MEP Nina Carberry visits those in Longford still struggling following the storm