Midleton family living 'in constant fear' almost five months after floods destroyed their home

Family of five who moved back home last week say they had to fund repairs themselves, with no Government help, and fear being flooded again

Alan Mahy in the kitchen of the family home after they returned to live there last week after spending 135 days out of the house as remedial and renovation works were undertaken following the devastating floods of Storm Babet. Pictures: Larry Cummins

A family of five has finally been able to move back into their home in Midleton, some 135 days after Storm Babet forced extensive restoration work to be done.

Alan Mahy, his wife Orla, and their three children had to leave their home after water up to 4ft flooded the ground floor.

Mr Mahy was in Portugal with his mother when his home flooded in October and "felt helpless". His wife had to rush back from Cork City to pick up their children during the storm.

“Everything” was damaged, he said, including floorboards, doors, furniture, and toys, leaving Mr Mahy and his family to live with a friend for a few weeks before moving to lodgings in Fota.

Without a home for over four and a half months, Mr Mahy said they had to use their savings to carry out the repairs that were needed.

He said they did not receive any of the Government funding but were “lucky enough to have flood insurance”, albeit they are still waiting to be paid out by the company.

“We’re rebuilding the house again, the whole ground floor was destroyed, everything,” Mr Mahy told 96FM's Opinion Line on Wednesday.

"Over the last few months, we’ve been getting the floors put in again and future-proofing the house as best as we can because we’re at risk of flooding again.

“We’ve put a wall instead of two doors, we’ve put in better flooring that experts say is better suited to water getting into it. We’ve replaced the kitchen, we’ve replaced children’s toys, you name it, everything.”

Mr Mahy added they used Facebook pages and Marketplace to get replacement furniture.

“We’ve been generously helped by people around the place. But in terms of big costs and repairs, that’s all being done by ourselves,” he added.

Living in fear

Last month, a petition signed by 15,000 people was delivered to the Dáil from protestors angry at what they claim is a lack of urgency to protect East Cork from future flood devastation.

Families and children have been living in “fear”, especially when it starts raining, according to the Midleton and East Cork Flood Action Group.

The group wanted the Government to “do something and encourage Cork County Council or the Office of Public Works (OPW)” to put some interim measures in place to prevent the East Cork area from flooding again.

They added people were afraid if they spent all this money on their homes to rebuild them, there was a risk of it happening again.

On Friday, Mr Mahy and his family moved back into their home in Midleton, however, he said they were in “constant fear” about it being flooded again.

Alan Mahy outside his home. The third skip of flood-damaged items is almost full. 

“We are trying as best as we can to protect our children from despair,” he said.

He added his children, aged six, four and two, have been excited for the last few weeks about being able to return to their home.

“They say ‘God I can’t wait to go home, I can’t wait to go home. I can’t wait,' Mr Mahy said.

But at the same time, every time we pass the river or pass the puddle, they say we are going to flood again. ‘Oh bold river, oh bold bridge’, because the bridge still hasn’t been repaired, the river is still very high.

He and wife Orla are trying to put on a brave face, he said.

While it was a “good day” for the family as they moved back home, Mr Mahy said he did not know what could happen five to six months down the line as storm season comes.

“We have protected our house, we’ve put in floodgates, we’ve removed doors and put in walls instead.

“We are pretty confident water won’t get into the house again. As confident as we can be, but we are not confident that water won’t be up our driveway — for that reason we’re constantly in fear.” 

Five months on from Storm Babet, it is estimated about 350 people are still struggling with the impact of last October’s floods.

These include people living in estates in and around Midleton, Beechwood Drive, Willowbank, Tir Cluain, and Woodlands, as well as several houses on Mill Road and further out in areas like Mogeely.