Fallen trees in river blamed for flooding on main route

The Local Roads Committee, which is seeking improvements to regional and local roads in Mayo, has called on the Office of Public Works (OPW) to address frequent road closures on the R312.

Twice in the past eight weeks the road, which is the main artery between Castlebar and Belmullet, has been closed, once for 24 hours due to flooding and again following an accident, resulting in thousands of commuters and emergency service vehicles being forced to make detours. Heavy rain has also seen the graveyard in Glenisland partially flooded.

The issue of flooding on the road has been aggravated by the condition of the Crumpaun River, according to the Local Roads Committee.

The spokesperson for the group Brendan Lavelle said it is now inevitable that further flooding will occur on the R312 this winter.

“The state of the Crumpaun River is a cause of considerable concern at present. Over the past few years, a number of trees have fallen across the river, nearly blocking it completely in a number of locations,” he explained.

“With the winter rains ahead of us, it seems inevitable that some of these trees will be washed downstream to the bridge where they will significantly reduce the flow of water and cause further flooding.”

Mr Lavelle said the OPW must act on the situation immediately.

“We are calling on the Office of Public Works to come out of hibernation and deal with the fallen trees in the Crumpaun River before they become a serious problem this winter.

“We are calling on our elected representatives to contact the OPW and express their concerns in relation to the R312 and other regional and local roads that are in need of attention.

“There was more being done with maintenance on rivers 30 or 40 years ago with less modern machinery. Rural Ireland is being neglected as usual. The budget for regional and local roads has not increased with inflation.”