Picture: Philo Brosnan
A Kerry TD has called for an urgent review of Kerry County Council’s Winter Plan, claiming last week’s cold snap clearly demonstrated the current one is deficient.
Deputy Pa Daly said the situation needs to be revised urgently and that the overall response was simply not good enough.
“I would like to credit roads and council staff for their efforts in keeping our main roads clear which is essential for emergency vehicles. However, too many areas were left out of the plan and residents were left struggling in dangerous conditions to get to work, school and to medical appointments,” he said.
He said main routes into Tralee from Causeway and Ballyduff and into Listowel from Ballybunion and Tarbert remained dangerous and residents of housing estates in Castlemaine and Milltown were unable to leave their houses for a number of days despite the main roads being passable.
“Their own estates were like glass and too dangerous to walk or drive out of,” Deputy Daly stated.
He said they would gladly have gritted their own properties but could not get out to access salt.
“Better planning would have ensured that these communities and estates had access to enough salt at the start of the freeze to deal with their own areas,” he remarked.
“It is clear that we need a Winter plan for the entire county that covers not just main roads but key roads into towns and also that we deliver enough sand to local communities to allow them to grit their own roadways and housing estates,” said Deputy Daly who has raised the matter with the CEO of Kerry County Council.
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