Mayo town to test flood preparations next month

A simulated flood exercise will take place in Crossmolina on December 10 to further test the town’s emergency flood defence plans – with the town still awaiting a flood relief scheme nine years on from devastating, generational flooding events.

A meeting took place earlier this month to refresh preparations in the north Mayo town in the event of a repeat of the events that occurred in December 2015 when the river Deel burst its banks.

Following on from that meeting, it was agreed to carry out a simulated flood exercise to review the plan. Cllr Michael Loftus explained more about the exercise at last week’s area meeting.

“We are asking people to put up their flood barriers and we have teams assigned for each street to help people who may be elderly or unable to put out their flood barriers.”

“We have sandbags in place and we’re prepared but it is important to review this plan,” he said.

An order was placed in September for the Crossmolina Flood Relief Scheme by then Minister Paschal Donohue and is subject to a three-month timeframe in which the order can be challenged by the public.

This timeframe expires on December 3, which is coincidentally almost nine years to the day of the devastating flood events brought on by Storm Desmond.

Cllr Loftus said December 3 will be ‘D-Day’ for the Flood Relief Scheme and all going well, it is hoped works may begin in January.