“We were told there was going to be a drainage assessment, but the results of that continue to be pushed back, now to spring 2026, and from my end that is just unacceptable.”
Co Down residents “afraid to go to sleep over nightmare” flooding concerns are facing significant delays to an engineer’s report that could save their homes.
Newry, Mourne and Down District Council held a meeting this week with Northern Ireland Water (NIW) to address local concerns including recent Newcastle flooding.
The chamber heard a NIW chief was left “puzzled” by delays to a hydraulic report which could hold the key to “horrendous” flooding of homes in the seaside town.
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Mournes SDLP councillor Laura Devlin said: “You have said about critical investment needed for NIW, but I don’t see any mention of Newcastle and the constant threat of flooding in the wider area.
“We are very grateful for the temporary protocol by NIW, but we still don’t have the permanent fix that residents want and deserve.
“We were told there was going to be a drainage assessment, but the results of that continue to be pushed back, now to spring 2026, and from my end that is just unacceptable.
“We have a super flood resilience group in Newcastle, but they feel let down by NIW and the government in general.
“It’s vital the hydraulic assessment is published and NIW’s plans to deal with the nightmare residents continue to live every time it rains.
“There are residents who are afraid to go to sleep and that is their daily life.
“We need to see NIW proposals and time-lines.”
The most recent flooding of Newcastle was witnessed with a ‘Yellow’ warning for heavy rainfall forecast on Sunday Oct 19 with over 1,200 sandbags made available.
The Newcastle Regional Community Resilience Group (NRCRG) , which was set up after repeated incidents in the seaside town, recently told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that “sticking plaster” solutions to flooding have left them on the verge of collapse.
NIW head of investment management, Stephen Blockwell responded: “We are aware of the issues in Newcastle and we have been pushing as well for our modellers and consultants.
“So, we are keen to get that information, to start looking at what a potential solution could look like.
“It will take time.Flooding is difficult to address.
“I hear what you are saying about residents being fearful in their homes when it rains and it is horrendous.
“In terms of the report, if I am honest it has puzzled me why it has taken so long.
“We will be having a meeting (this week) to try and drive this harder and get those results and nail things down for the guys in Newcastle.”
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