The Aontú representative for Newry, Sharon Loughran, has said that in the immediate aftermath of the catastrophic flooding in Newry, and indeed Downpatrick, Portadown and other places, unless compensation and financial assistance is swift many businesses will not survive.
Ms Loughran said: “I want to express my deep concern for homeowners and the owners of businesses and their staff who have been affected. Many of these businesses were only recovering in recent months from the effects of Covid lockdowns and restrictions only to be hit again with this. All possible support, financial or otherwise, needs to be made available to them to restore their premises, replace lost stock and compensate for lost earnings. Many businesses have no insurance due to historical flooding and they cannot be expected to carry the huge losses. Homeowners are eligible for £1000 compensation from the Council, but this is little enough, especially if insurance is not in place”.
“It is good to see various efforts are already being made to source temporary premises and storage. The resourcefulness and solidarity of the business community in Newry is to be commended. In this they will have the full backing of the people of Newry and surrounding area. The leaders of the 5 largest parties have come together to write to NI Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris to call for funding of an emergency relief scheme. This is as it should be and let’s hope he will not take the ‘plague on all your houses’ attitude that seems to typify his response to many other issues”
“Reasonable levels of flood compensation are available in Britain and in the Republic, so why not here? Many businesses will not survive without prompt and adequate compensation. The immediate need is to focus on clearing up, allocating financial assistance, and reopening as soon as possible. However, we must already begin looking at what happened in detail and whether this could have been prevented, or at least greatly minimised. Aontu back the call by NM&D District Council on Monday night for an independent investigation; not to find scapegoats, but to learn any lessons that will prevent a future repeat of the flooding. An internal review by the Council would not suffice. As the flooding in Newry was largely caused by the Newry Canal overflowing, we need to ask if too much attention was focused, in flood prevention planning, on the risk from the Clanrye River alone, and not enough on the potential for it to overflow and overload Newry Canal. It seems that there was a knock-on effect from the Clanrye overflowing into the Canal north of Newry”
“Were steps taken to reduce the level of water in the Canal at the Victoria Lock sluice gates? If so, why were these inadequate and what needs to change? In the last 2 years the first of 3 phases of a flood alleviation plan was put into operation at a cost of £2.9 million. Did it help in any way prevent worse flooding on this occasion? Will the next 2 phases be reviewed in the light of what has happened to ensure they will be effective? How long will it be before these phases are implemented and is the money there to do it? The investigation also needs to look at the reasons behind the extensive flooding in Downpatrick and elsewhere. This investigation needs to begin immediately so that necessary action is implemented before we find ourselves back in the exact same situation. If Storm Ciaran had passed over us and not southern Britain in the second half of last week, the flooding could easily have been worse again. I would like to thank all those from various emergency services and agencies who helped in any way in the response to this crisis. Finally, thanks to ordinary people such as the farmers who helped pump away water outside flooded homes in Camlough”.
ENDS
CLANRYE NEWS 