Crosshaven community suffers ‘Third World’ road, sewage systems

A small coastal community has the worst infrastructure in Co Cork, with its roads, water and sewerage systems being described as “Third World”, according to a local councillor.

The situation is so bad that during heavy spells of rain, sewage from septic tanks in Graball Bay area is flowing into storm water drains and down the road and out into the nearby picture-postcard village of Crosshaven.

Cllr Aidan Lombard raised the issue at a Cork County Council meeting when he said something had to be done urgently to address the issues for people living around Graball Bay.

He said council engineers in his own municipal district have said the job of fixing this and other problems in Graball is so large they haven’t the financial resources to address it.

Cllr Lombard added that local residents also had to put up with very poor drinking water from their taps and their roads were in a dire condition as well.

“The road, water and sewerage infrastructure is Third World. Our own county engineer described it on the phone to me as ‘the worst example of infrastructure in Cork’. Somebody in here (County Hall) has to take responsibility for it,” Cllr Lombard said.

He pointed out that the council was spending considerable money on turning nearby Fort Camden into a first-class tourist attraction, but at the same time was leaving sewerage flow down footpaths and roads, which was unacceptable.

Cllr Kevin Murphy, the leader of Fine Gael on the council, agreed with his party colleague, describing the situation in Graball Bay as “ a nightmare”.

Council officials said they would compile a comprehensive report on the problems raised by councillors.