County councillor: Cobh could be ‘marooned’
Thousands of people would be marooned if the only bridge into Cobh “blew up” or was taken out of commission in any way, a Cork County Councillor has warned.
Labour councillor Cathal Rasmussen has called on Cork County Council to outline an emergency access plan for the Great Island of Cobh in the event of its one and only connecting bridge at Belvelly being damaged, destroyed, or made impassable.
Speaking at Monday’s full meeting of Cork County Council, Cllr Rasmussen said the reality of the 200 year old bridge becoming impassible has never properly been discussed.
He said: “Thousands of motorists and tourists use this bridge daily. What would happen if the bridge was taken out of action?
“We all know that a new road and bridge need to be built.
“At present, if there’s a serious incident on the road, we all sit and wait for the road to be open and there’s huge delays.
“As of today, if the bridge did collapse, it was blew up, or was badly damaged by whatever means, there’s no plan to deal with this,” added the Cobh councillor.
Mr Rasmussen suggested that the army should be involved in any emergency plan put in place, as the use of military pontoon bridges may be necessary if the bridge is ever taken out of commission.
“With their expertise with pontoon bridges, I’m sure something could be done,” said Cllr Rasmussen.
“My concern is that if we don’t begin discussion, thousands of people will be marooned and discommoded,” he added.
Cllr Rasmussen also asked the council executive to provide details on how often the bridge is checked by engineers and when the last check was completed.
Independent Ireland councillor Ger Curley, also representing Cobh, said the Belvelly Bridge is “definitely showing signs of fatigue”.
He said: “I know it might be inspected every now and again, but it is a major concern.”
Fellow Cobh councillor, Fine Gael’s Sinead Sheppard, said that even the slightest accident on the Fota Road (R624) can cause the entire island of Cobh to be backed up for two or three hours.
She said: “The reality is a plan is going to take at least ten or 15 years to put in place.
“It’s a multi-million euro project and at present we’re getting grant aid of about €150k at a time to carry out surveys that are taking a very long time to do,” added Cllr Sheppard.
In a written response to Cllr Rasmussen’s motion, Cork County Council Divisional Manager, Niall Healy said: “In the event of unforeseen circumstances arising which could, in the event, give rise to an extended R624 road closure thereby impeding access/egress to/from Great Island, a multi-agency response would be required.
“Responses would likely be required from Port of Cork, Irish Rail, Department of Transport, Transport Infrastructure Ireland, and NTA/Bus Eireann, as well as other associated groups and agencies.
“The council will request it to be referred to the Regional Steering Group for Major Emergencies to consider the matter and identify what measures would be appropriate by way of response,” added Mr Healy.