Calls for ‘permanent flooding solution’ as clean up continues | UK News

Road workers and residents are continuing the clean-up after “frightening” flooding swept large stones and debris onto some residential streets in County Down after two days of heavy rainfall.

In the Tullybrannigan Road area of Newcastle residents were trapped in their homes after streams of water covered the road and water rose throughout Sunday.

Local residents and politicians are urging agencies to find “a permanent solution” and are calling for an investigation.

Sam Anderson, from Newcastle Regional Community Resilience Group said “temporary solutions” are not the answer.

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MLA Diane Forsythe said “we need an urgent investigation as to why this has happened here” while Sinn Féin MLA Cathy Mason said “everything needs to be looked into”.

A yellow weather warning for rain in counties Antrim, Armagh, and Down had been extended until 15:00 BST on Sunday and widened to include parts of counties Londonderry and Tyrone.

The Department for Infrastructure (DfI) told News NI that 900 sandbags have been deployed and roads service staff are helping remove large stones and debris from affected roads.

They identified the source of the flooding as being surface water run-off from the Mourne Mountains due to the heavy overnight rain.

Mr Anderson said temporary solutions have been put in place in recent years as parts of Newcastle have been hit hard by flooding.

Speaking on ‘s Good Morning Ulster he said a “temporary pump” was used over the weekend that “probably saved homes” but “it’s a temporary solution. As residents we want permanent solutions.”

He said some issues like drains being blocked have been raised in the past with agencies, but that “it falls on deaf ears”.

“That’s maintenance of the rivers, maintenance of the gullies, maintenance of the flaps that protect flood water getting in and out of the Burren river, and in actual fact NI water said they don’t have the resources to go and properly check all the flaps on the rivers.

“We want to see some action… what’s the point in us spending time talking to people? We want action… to help get the problem solved.”

Local resident Debbie Bigglestaff said on Sunday a “full force scale river” was flowing down her street.

She said neighbours were quick to act and worked together to protect homes.

“We gathered together, with wheelbarrows and picked up debris and helped to protect neighbours… all the neighbours pulled together.”

Ms Bigglestaff said an investigation is needed.

“Our road is ruined, completely… we don’t want it to happen again.

“I want it investigated, I think a lot of people were lucky yesterday.”

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MLA Diane Forsythe said after the flooding on Sunday, people are “grateful that no-one was hurt” but questioned how the scale of flooding could have happened.

“The amount of debris also that has fallen is quite frightening, we can see from the clean up the diggers are out today it’s absolutely terrifying.

“We need an urgent investigation as to why this has happened here.”

She said this was a yellow weather warning not an amber one, “a short time of heavy rainfall, so this is concerning”.

Asked about the flood alleviation scheme put in place, she questioned whether it was saving one area but causing problems for other areas.

“Has it made things better or has it moved everything to a different part of Newcastle? There has to be some solution we can find here.”

Mr Anderson echoed those concerns.

“I think the flooding is moving around… the flood in 2023 didn’t come across the Shimna River and then across the road,” he told News NI.

“Where it came from was the Burren river and the Tullybrannigan one is completely different again.

“We don’t know as yet why that flooding in those torrents of water came in – that was unexpected.”

Sinn Féin MLA Cathy Mason said: “It’s very clear it was just staggering… we’ve never seen images like this before and it’s unfortunate we can see events like this becoming more regular.

“It’s clearly having a negative effect on I suppose the mental health of these households. We can’t have that, we can’t have people living in fear.”

In 2020 Newcastle was hit by major flooding after Storm Francis hit parts of Northern Ireland.

Elderly residents were evacuated from the Shimna Road and the Bryansford Road after the Shimna river burst its banks.

As a result a flood alleviation scheme was introduced called “Shimna River Scheme”.

The scheme construction began in 2021, with the aim to protect more than 300 properties through a list of flood defence systems including walls, embankments and secant piling, which is a construction of continuous inter-locking walls to reinforced concrete.

Anyone impacted by floods can contact the Flood Incident Line 0300 2000 100 to request sandbags.