Derek Nolan (Galway West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The damage caused to County Galway during the recent very bad storm weather has been described as the worst coastal damage caused to the county in recent memory. It has caused damage to important infrastructure such as roads and piers. It also damaged graveyards, and people's walls and homes. In the city there has been damage to the promenade in Salthill and businesses along the Claddagh. The entire county was affected by the weather. I pay tribute to the staff of Galway City Council, Galway County Council, the emergency services and the ESB.

While nobody in this House is responsible for what happened, it is our responsibility to ensure that funding is made available immediately for urgent critical works through the local authorities and to put in place a medium-term strategy to deal with the greater effects on private and public property. We also need to ensure we have measures in place in advance to deal with the effects of high tides, including such unprecedented high tides.

We need to get the money out there quickly so that people in these areas know something will happen to deal with these communities and businesses that have been severely damaged. Fishermen have been severely put out because of damage to their boats, their materials and their facilities, not to mention the damage to the roads in order to get to the piers in the first place. We need to get the money out there to help put these people and their businesses communities back to work and on the right foot as soon as possible.

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