Cork West Civil Defence – Skibbereen Flooding – October 2013

4 November 2013

At 12.40am on Friday 25th October Cork West Civil Defence were tasked to respond to flooding in Skibbereen caused by torrential rain and rising river levels. By 1.15am there were 20 volunteers at the Cork West HQ building being briefed on various tasks which included traffic management, floodwater pumping, flood defence distribution and deployment, assistance in the evacuation of vulnerable residents and ongoing liaison with the local Fire Service, Gardaí and Local Authority Staff.

Civil Defence and Fire Service crews worked tirelessly to ensure floodwaters were pumped effectively into water tankers which were driven and emptied at a safe remove from the flood site. Volunteers were rested and rotated throughout the night and early morning, with a total of 35 personnel, including volunteers from Cork South Civil Defence involved from 1.15am through to 4.30pm, at which time flood waters had receded from all approach roads and from within the town, and the flood response operation could be stood-down.

It has been publicly acknowledged by the Skibbereen Flood Action Committee that the overall co-ordinated response from all the agencies was extremely effective in minimising the potential damage to property and residences on this occasion.

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