Flooding after heavy rainfall in an area in Laois to be addressed

AN issue of spot flooding caused by blocked drains after heavy rainfall in Ballinakill is to be addressed.

Cllr Marie Tuohy raised the concerns of people in the locality at the April meeting of Portlaoise Municipal District Council meeting.

She said that the road is used by lorries traveling to and from Booth’s Quarry concrete facility and “culverts are blocked, which is causing the drains and stream to overflow. When it rains heavy the road gets flooded, and is dangerous. It’s also eroding the road surface.” 

She said: “When it rains heavy the water flows back down onto the road, and you can’t actually see the surface of the road or the steep drains.” 

Cllr John Joe Fennelly seconding her proposal calling on the council to address the matter said the council “had carried work on in the area along there recently, but maybe the drain wasn’t cleared.” 

The council’s senior executive engineer Wes Wilkinson said that he would examine the location, “and make arrangements to unblock the drains.”