Flooding taskforce meets

Rodney Edwards • Published 23 Dec 2009 09:00 0 Comments

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The Task Force set up by the Executive in response to the unprecedented levels of flooding in Fermanagh last month have finally met for the first time.

The group which were established to investigate the factors which contributed to the high level of flooding in the county gathered together for the first time yesterday (Tuesday) for a meeting at Enniskillen Townhall.

The Task Force will consider how departments can assist in dealing with the aftermath and will examine lessons learned, identify longer term planning issues and consider preparations for possible measures to minimise the impact of future flooding.

Yesterday's meeting was attended by Agriculture and Rural Development Minister,Michelle Gildernew; Enterprise, Trade and Investment Minister, Arlene Foster; Regional Development Minister, Conor Murphy; Department of the Environment Minister, Edwin Poots; and Head of the Civil Service, Bruce Robinson, who heads the Task Force. Representatives from a range of government organisations were also there, including local agencies - apart from Waterways Ireland, which were the only agency not present at the meeting.

The meeting provided Ministers with the opportunity to hear first hand from local officials about the challenges they faced in dealing with the flooding in Fermanagh as well as getting an update on the current position.

Ministers paid tribute to the people of Fermanagh for the way they responded as a community to help each other at a very difficult time.

Speaking after the meeting, Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster said it was "important" for the Task Force to meet before Christmas.

"We wanted to show the people of Fermanagh that this is all about action. The next stage for us is that we are going to listen to the experiences of the people on the ground. The one thing people have said to me, whether they've been traders, residents or farmers, is that they wanted to see action. We must take that on board to bring that action about." she said.

Michelle Gildernew, Agriculture Minister, thought it was a "very strong" and "positive" first meeting; "There are high expectations out there from people, so there's nothing that we won't look at into finding solutions. During the meeting there was clear recognition for the people of Fermanagh and how they helped each other out during what was a very tough time. We take anything that affects rural dwellers very seriously indeed. There were children who couldn't get into school, carers who couldn't get to their patients. Daily life in Fermanagh was severely disrupted by these floods and that's why we needed to meet to address these issues," she said.

The Ministers also expressed a desire to hear from those most affected by the floods and announced that evidence gathering meetings will be held in Fermanagh in early January 2010, comprising of those local people who were worst affected by the floods.

The Task Force also agreed a target date of the end of February 2010 for producing the first phase of its review into the Fermanagh floods.

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 23 Dec 09

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