Severe weather plan revealed

At last Tuesday night’s Council meeting, Senior Environmental Health Officer, Rory Donnelly delivered a presentation on a contingency plan in the event of severe weather.

Highlighting the severe weather conditions being experienced in England, Mr Donnelly reminded members of the record low temperatures that we experienced here in Northern Ireland in December 2010. At that time, Council opened up public buildings and provided water to residents who were experiencing problems.

At the start of this year, a tidal surge saw some flooding in the area, fortunately there was minimal damage, but Mr Donnelly pointed out that the situation could have been worse.

The Council Officer told members that Council’s role in a weather emergency would include providing buildings for use by the public, providing services like waste collection and cleansing and providing expertise through departments such as Environmental Health and Building control.

The members themselves were reminded of their duty as an elected representative.

Mr Donnelly reminded those present that they would need to support the community and provide a face for Council in the event of severe weather.

The Senior Environmental Health Officer provided each of the members with an information pack containing contact details of agencies that they may need to contact in the event of any problems.

He said “Preparation is the key, that’s why it is important that we are armed with the appropriate contact details.”