Damage reported four days before viaduct collapse

Iarnród Éireann has confirmed that a member of the public reported a possible problem with erosion at the rail viaduct in Malahide four days before it collapsed last week.

A leader in the Malahide Sea Scouts called the company after spotting signs of erosion at the same section of bridge which fell into the sea on Friday

Iarnród Éireann says an engineer subsequently carried out a surface inspection and found that the damage was cosmetic rather than structural.

He did not examine the seabed, but the rail company is insisting that all the proper procedures were followed.

An unnamed member of the Malahide Sea Scouts is quoted in this morning's newspapers as saying that the group had noticed a massive change in the water flow under the bridge in recent months due to major erosion below the surface.

The man says photographs of the erosion were given to the Department of Transport's rail investigation unit in July.