COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, December 08, 2014

QUESTION NO.21

QUESTION: Councillor G. O'Connell

To ask the Chief Executive for a report on the cleaning of gullies and surface water drains across the County and to state if he is satisfied that the present approach is satisfactory given the incidence of heavy downpours in recent years and to indicate where concerned residents or traders are to go when they notice blocked drains or are worried about flooding, in and out of office hours, now that Irish Water and Local Authorities share responsibilities?

REPLY: 

Met Eireann advised South Dublin County Council that heavy rainfall was forecast for the Dublin area between November 13th and 14th. During this period up to 65mm of rain fell within some areas of the county.

South Dublin County Council staff and crews were actively monitoring the situation both on the ground and in liaison with Met Eireann. Council crews were dispatched to cleaning gullies and removing debris from all river screens in flood prone areas. Fortunately no residential properties were flooded however as a result of this severe rainfall event localised ponding, sewer chokes and some overflows occurred.

The Council had maintenance crews on standby to deal with emergencies over the 24hrs. In addition we also provide an emergency 24/7 service where members of the public seeking assistance in an emergency can contact ph: 01 4574907. Incidents were tackled by a combination of Council's Drainage and Roads Maintenance Sections response crews. The Drainage Section responded to some 20 call outs and all were resolved.

Members of the public can also visit the council’s Winter Weather Information Section on our website www.sdcc.ie which provides practical information on how we can all take some simple steps to ensure our safety and that of others during adverse weather, the website also provides contact details of organisations and agencies that can provide guidance and assistance.

The Roads Maintenance and Drainage Sections are currently compiling a report on these flooding incidents and will review the impacts associated with recent heavy rainfall with a view to identifying a range of measures and minor works schemes that can be progressed in the short to medium term. 

Matters associated with surface water still reside with the Local Authority. Irish Water is the new national water utility and is now responsible for managing the delivery of water services to homes and businesses in Ireland. As the new Water Authority, Irish Water are responsible for both potable water and wastewater services. Irish Water recently issued a communique to all public representatives as to the appropriate Irish Water lines of communication. These details are re-iterated here -

Dedicated Direct Line for Councillors:   1890 178 178, between 9am to 5.30pm,   5 days per week Monday to Friday.

Email:  localrepsupport@water.ie

Operations Line    1890 278 278?LoCall number for South City   24 hour operation   Metering, General, Customer Reactive enquiries

Minicom   1890 378 378

Customer Campaign   Application Line    1890 448 448/ 01 7072824   8am to 8pm every day    Application Processing / Enquiry

On-line Channels    www.water.ie, and   Twitter - @IrishWater