Burst pipe on Fermoy bridge forces locals onto tolled motorway

Northside of the town left without water for at least 12 hours

A major pipe burst at around 5.30pm this evening has resulted in the closure of Kent Bridge in Fermoy.

Fears have been expressed that commuters will be left to pay the price after further issues arose with the only 'free' main road to bypass a congested town in Co Cork.

Calls have been made to ensure that, in future, no tolls are applied to locals who have to transit north to south of the Blackwater river in Fermoy and vice versa if there are accidents or flooding which cut off the town's only non-motorway bridge. The only access through Fermoy, apart from the M8, is across the town's Kent Bridge.

Around 5.30pm tonight, a major pipe burst on the bridge and although work will start on the repairs in the morning, the northside of Fermoy will be left without water for at least 12 hours.

“This is obviously a major inconvenience to the residents and businesses affected by this. I can confirm that the bridge is closed for the night and may even remain so into the morning, causing major issues for those needing to get to work and school,” said Fermoy-based Fine Gael councillor Noel McCarthy.

“After a major back-up of traffic, the toll (charge) was finally lifted. I do believe that this should be the status quo any time there's an issue in Fermoy causing the closure of the bridge. This is not the first time something like this has happened and I am highly doubtful that it will be the last,” said Mr McCarthy.

'Obstacles in the way'

He said he has pushed to have a plan in place for when issues like this arise, “but there always seems to be obstacles in the way of making a set plan to make sure residents of Fermoy are able to get to work and school in a straightforward, logical way". 

Irish Water said its crews have isolated and closed off the flow of water and the area is being made safe, but that customers in the north of the town can expect supply interruptions until the repair is complete.

“The repairs are complex due to the location of the burst on a bridge and works need to be carefully carried out. Due to the need for extensive traffic management onsite and for the safety of dedicated water services crews the repair of the burst can't commence until early tomorrow morning. It typically takes two to three hours following repairs to restore normal supply to all customers affected by an unplanned outage,” said the Irish Water spokesman.