ANTI-Austerity Alliance councillor Cian Prendiville is calling on Irish Water to explain why water mains in the city are continually bursting following two incidents in Limerick this week.
At 4.30am this Tuesday, July 22, a water main serving Corbally burst outside Scoil Ide affecting residents and businesses in the area including Mill Road, Corbally Road, Irish Estates, Shannon Banks, Westbury and Barry’s Cross.
Limerick City and County Council advised motorists travelling from East Clare to avoid the R463 and use the R464 via Parteen and Longpavement. The road had to be closed for a time and residents and businesses were also asked to conserve supply until full service was restored.
On Monday, July 21, at 5am a burst pipe in Caherdavin caused flooding in the Brookville Avenue area. AAA councillor and local resident Cian Prendiville said he was told by the council that this main burst was a result of outdated pipes struggling to cope. There were no works taking place in the area when the water main burst.
Rather than spending over €500 million on water meters, he said this money should be invested in fixing the water network
He has written to the Cathaoirleach and Mayor asking that Irish Water and the relevant Council officials come to the next meeting to explain the recent spate of burst water mains.
Meanwhile, Sinn Fein councillor for City North, Maurice Quinlivan, has condemned the persistent failure of Irish Water to keep Limerick residents appraised of water outages. He claimed that residents across the city were becoming increasingly exasperated with the new utility company.
“It’s bad enough that interruptions to supply are becoming a daily occurrence, but the failure of Irish Water to give adequate, or in some cases any notice, is making life increasingly difficult for residents”.
“When water was controlled by our local authority residents would always be given good notice of any interruption to supply. Now that it’s under the control of this new faceless utility there is no-once willing to take responsibility for keeping residents informed,” he claimed.
There was no comment from Irish Water at the time of going to press.
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