'Now you see the danger of it': Crossing to island not so sound for people on Dursey
Dursey islanders Martin Sheehan (left) and Bernie O'Leary with the boat and the broken derrick in the background. Picture: Eddie O'Hare
The rope was attached to the boat, and through a Y buckle to metal railings, with the third end securely fastened to a digger, carefully travelling in reverse.
Down in the water four men heaved at a boat, trying to pull it out of the water. And then the rope snapped.
The metal buckle shot clear towards the railings, and the men — boat owner and islander Bernie O'Leary, Martin Sheehan, also born and bred on Dursey, and three men working on the reconstruction of the famous Dursey cable car — had to turn to Plan B.
The rope was repositioned directly onto the small boat and with the men heaving it into position, it was dragged up sufficiently by the digger for it to be tied securely, above the water line.
"Now you see the danger of it," Mr Sheehan said.
The cable car has not operated since the start of last April. Since then, access to the island has been severely curtailed, with a RIB operating for people who need to access Dursey for farming purposes.
Outside of those trips, it can be a short but difficult crossing on small boats.
According to Mr Sheehan, the biggest concern is trying to bring a boat safely ashore.
The derrick, which lifts boats out of the water, is brown with rust and broken.
The gradient is steep. Mr O'Leary nearly lost his boat. Referring to the pier, Mr Sheehan said: "That is some neglect."
Tim Hanley, the community development worker for Bere, Whiddy, and Dursey Islands, said the local authority was notified some time ago of the issue.
"We did make the council aware that the pier needed upgrading," he said, adding that this was communicated to Cork County Council late last year.
The closure of the cable car — a signature point on the Wild Atlantic Way — has severely limited access to Dursey, and according to Tim Hanley, left some "high and dry".
Cork County Council said that following a severe weather incident in late 2021, it carried out a structural review of the Dursey Cable Car infrastructure "and identified that urgent essential repairs were necessary to ensure the continued safe operation of the cable car".
"As it was not possible to operate the cable car while the structural works were carried out, the cable car was taken from service for the duration of the works.
"The contract to replace the tower infrastructure is close to completion and work is ongoing to replace or refurbish the remaining key components of the infrastructure.
"A date for the resumption of the cable car service will be confirmed once all components are in place and consent has been granted by the Commission for Railways Regulation to operate the cable car following completion of all necessary works.
"Cork County Council has contracted a ferry operator to provide a temporary ferry service for the duration of the works.
"The council can confirm that the ferry service continues to operate (subject to favourable weather conditions)."
As the sun slanted across Dursey on Friday morning, the sea was relatively calm over, but not calm enough.
Mr Sheehan has cattle over there, the place where he went to school, where he grew up and still visits.
There is sufficient grass for the winter, but he is worried that into the spring his animals could be short of fodder unless the cable car is up and running by then.
"If we get a bad storm, we won't be able to visit my livestock."
Wrapping up the ropes, the boat secured, he said: "As the man said, this is unprecedented."
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