This article is from page 7 of the 2014-01-07 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 7 JPG
THE Lahinch Promenade will be reopened to the public later this week with repair crews from Clare County Council set to begin work on the battered site this morning, January 7.
The promenade felt the brunt of this weekend’s unprecedented storms with millions of euro worth of damage being inflicted in just 48 hours. A combination of storm tides surging underneath the promenade itself and 40-foot waves crashing over it inflicted major damage to the sea wall and the structure of the prom itself.
Dozen of concrete slabs were lifted off the prom wall while large sections of iron railing, installed earlier this year by Clare County Council, were snapped and washed away. Despite the extensive damage, Clare County Council expect to be able to reopen the promenade before the weekend.
“The storm themselves are only beginning to die down at this stage as it is impossible to do any meaningful work in storm conditions. So, over the next few days we want to get in there and carry out the basic re- medial works that need attention and get the prom opened again as soon as possible. We would hope to be in a position to open the prom in a matter of days, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. To bring it back to the type of facility that it deserves to be will take major works,” said senior engineer with Clare County Council, Tom Tiernan.
“We have to put some sort of an estimate on what this is going to cost and make sure that this estimate is heard and considered and that we get the finding that we desperately need to carry out this work.”
The council has also committed to having Lahinch ship shape again before the start of the tourist season.
“The council are determined that Lahinch be up and running fully for the summer season. Nobody needs to be reminded that Lahinch is one of the jewels in the crown of Clare tourism and it needs to be up and running again for the summer season. The prom is one of the icon parts of the Clare tourism product and we want to be in a position where by that product is as good as ever come this summer,” continued Mr Tiernan.