When County Roscommon’s Curraghboy village flooded, the first item Ellie McLoughlin evacuated from her home was her son’s piano. Ellie and her 80-year-old neighbour, Brian Fallon, were displaced from their homes by the vast body of water.
Fallon, a long-time farmer, was taken aback by the rapid onset of the flooding. The usually cheerful and hopeful single mother of three, admitted that the disaster had quickly dampened her spirits. [Lough Funshinagh flooding causes road blockages and evacuations from homes]
Lough Funshinagh’s persistent flooding crisis, since 2016, has seen it emerge as one of the most critical flood-related issues nationwide. The Curraghboy citizens are finding themselves unexpectedly in the eye of the storm, which has long plagued residents on the other side of the turlough.
Beyond Ellie’s family, another family had to evacuate as well, and two neighbouring residences are presently in jeopardy. Ellie’s children, aged eight, 11, and 13, are understandably distraught; her youngest has become so worried that he clings to her side.
A decade ago, Ellie used her savings and took out a large loan to purchase and extend her dear cottage, turning it into a dream home. But last week, damaging water began to permeate from the bedroom floors. Her children left home last Thursday, but she stayed for an extra day to remove as much water as possible. Her brother and friends joined in the evacuation effort, carrying the family’s treasured possessions – including the piano – through the dangerous floods.
County council staff stepped in to retrieve Ellie’s passports and other valuables from her house when it was deemed too risky to return. [Size of Roscommon lake doubled, posing threat to properties and the environment]
Ellie laments over her loss, as she had personally invested so much into the house – her brother had fitted the kitchen and a family friend did the flooring. She worryingly notes that it’s like losing a piece of her soul. However, her primary concern is the toll this ordeal is taking on her children. She’s at loss of words on how to reassure them, as the future of their home remains uncertain. Despite it all, she’s trying to keep a strong front for them.
The ancestral residence where Brian Fallon, born and raised, still stands unscathed by flooding, despite the surrounding land being masked by water. A purchase made by his forefather back in 1870, today the house remains untouchable, its access road however is a waterway.
“Aquatic transportation is a must,” quips Brian, a light exchange with Ellie.
“The generation that shaped this nation,” his son reflects, paying tribute to his ancestors who endured countless economic downturns. Feeling overlooked and let down, he comments on the village of Ballagh’s prolonged struggle with flooding.
Ballagh, a distant lakeside settlement, has been enduring the merciless increase in water levels since 2016 according to local councillor, Laurence Fallon. Once a submersion of 600 acres during extreme winter floods, it’s now more than doubled to 1300 acres.
In 2022 a somber vigil was organised when the Lyons O’Meara family home, vacant for 20 months following relentless flooding, was razed. Now, only the upper section of their garden gate is visible above the water, while their neighbours remain, two families vow to defy the odds, and the water.
Edward John Beattie, 85, and Teresa, his wife, 83, embittered by the experience of being displaced from their home for nearly a year between 2021-2022, preferred to stay in their home, dismissing the council’s advisories. The patience of this old couple was put under severe strain when their power supply, vitally needed for the pump that keeps the flood from encroaching, was cut for several hours last Thursday.
Matthew, their son and the head of Lough Funshinagh Crisis Committee reveals, “The sight of water advancing on their driveway sent them into a panic. They haven’t been sleeping properly for a while. Living frighteningly close to threatening flood waters hampers peaceful sleep and is practically untenable.”
Commenting on the emotional toll of the crisis, Fallon notes a notable number of locals now sleep in their armchairs, flooding fears overcoming them. He highlights the critical role the sandbag barriers play protecting the homes of Beattie and their neighbours Mary and Padraig Beattie. A sudden shift of a single bag could see one home submerged by up to three feet of water within a quarter of an hour, he cautions.
Tom Carney, a 72-year-old resident living approximately a kilometre away, woke up to an alarming sight two weeks ago. Floodwaters, triggered by Storm Kathleen, had infiltrated his basement, leaving a four to five feet deep water level. His ancestral home, situated nearby on an elevated patch of land raised 8ft to fend off floodwater, was also filled with four feet of water.
Carney, a farmer by profession, reported a steady decline in his arable land over the years, attributing it to flooding. He estimates about a 65% loss since 2016. Consequently, his livestock numbers have also dwindled, with only three cows left from an original dozen and sheep count dropping from 70 to 25 this year. The continuous struggle has left Carney feeling drained, particularly over the last couple of months.
Like many local residents, Carney is exasperated over the stalled flood relief efforts by the Roscommon County Council — a halt contended on grounds of environmental protection. With Goose’s Island, a commonly used grazing location, completely submerged, the only remnants are tree-tops poking out of the inundated terrain. He mourns the loss of his hand-built stone wall, now under several feet of water, and the Whitethorn trees he carefully nurtured.
Local Matthew Beattie concurs that Lough Funshinagh, now heavily submerged, cannot realistically be deemed a Special Area of Conservation. With the environment facing massive losses in wildlife, trees and hedgerows, he states, “The environment certainly is not gaining.”
Barry Martin, a 91-year-old farmer, resided in a now eerily quiet farmyard. As the water level rose, inundating his lambing shed, hayshed, and home, he was forced to sell off his entire flock of pregnant ewes. Amidst all the upheaval, his daughter Maria and neighbour Geraldine Murray have found some cause for optimism. The recent visit by Minister of State for the OPW, Kieran O’Donnell, uplifted their spirits, and the prospect of an upcoming visit from Taoiseach Simon Harris has further added to the community’s hope.
While the council’s emergency relief operations started in 2021 have been impeded twice via judicial reviews, the OPW conveyed, the community waits for reprieve.
A project worth €2 million, aimed at installing an overflow pipe to manage surplus water from Lough Funshinagh to the Shannon located three kilometres distant, was proposed. The intention of the Minister as relayed by his spokesperson, was to swiftly identify an effective solution – potentially encompassing interim works to control local flooding as an urgent remedial action, if vital. To ascertain when work can commence, they are currently pursuing legal advice. However, the Friends of the Irish Environment, who successfully delayed county council-led work through a court challenge, claimed that both the council and the OPW have been unsuccessful in developing a lawfully acceptable strategy for years. They have wholly disappointed local inhabitants both in Funshinagh and Carrowmore, an area where the community is put at risk by the plan to release discharge from the proposed exit pipe.