Flood relocation: ‘It’s only bricks and mortar but it’s your home’

Miley Cotter has been unable to get insurance for his home in Co Cork ever since it was so badly flooded over a year ago that he and his family had to move out for six months.

The Office of Public Works doesn’t have any flood relief plans for the area either and this means flooding has rendered his home, where he reared his three children, worthless as there is every likelihood that this part of Clasharinka, near Castlemartyr, will flood again.

Miley, who has lived in the locality for 60 years, has taken a keen interest in the OPW’s plans to offer a flooding relocation package to an estimated 80-100 householders nationwide.

“I’ve seen the criteria and it looks like I would satisfy them all. I would of course be interested but you know, when it comes to it, you have to knock your house. To watch that would not be nice,” he said.

“I know it’s only bricks and mortar but it’s your life, your memories, it’s your home.”

Miley Cotter standing outside his home in Castlemartyr, Co Cork, which was flooded just over a year ago. The water outside his home has made the N25 main Cork to Waterford road impassable for weeks. Picture: Dan Linehan

Miley, his wife Margaret and two of his three grown-up children, Barry (27) and Laura (20), were evacuated from their home by the army in early 2016, spending days living in hotels before they moved into rented accommodation.

Before the army rescued the family in a boat, Miley had spent two days pumping flood waters out of his house but this only reduced flooding by four inches.

In 2009, his garden had been extensively flooded with water reaching the step of his door but luckily it didn’t come any further.

“Our attitude then was ‘ah sure the grass will grow again and we can replant flowers’ but 2015 was a different case altogether,” he said.

According to Miley, his house is built over a caving system and when waters levels rise in the caves, the field on the other side of the N25 floods and then his property floods.

Under the proposed scheme, they will be provided with financial assistance of up to a maximum of €200,000 to cover the cost of relocating in the area.