[caption id="attachment_67713" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Workers from Dublin City Council deal with blocked drains in Kilmainham after Camac River burst its banks."]
DUBLIN POLS LASH FLOOD RESPONSE
Northside politicians have slammed the official response to last week's flooding that left local homes devastated for the third time in the past three years.
The downpour on Monday, Oct. 24, caused chaos throughout the city with traffic brought to a standstill and countless homes suffering from flooding, the Northside People reports.
Dublin North West TD Dessie Ellis, who was on hand to help out with the rescue efforts, said he was "very annoyed" with the response to the flooding.
"At one point I had to crawl along the bank at the side of the road to tell one woman to get out of her car as the water was almost up to the window and she wasn't moving," he said.
Deputy Ellis said calls were made well in advance to Dublin City Council to warn them of the impending floods and he criticized the local authority's response to the disaster.
Dublin Central Labour TD Joe Costello also slammed Dublin City Council's emergency response in Cabra, Ballybough and North Strand.
"Flooding is not a new phenomenon," he said. "The city engineers are aware that the city drainage system is not equipped to deal with a surge and this issue needs to be dealt with as a matter of urgency.
"While I accept that some work has been done which has provided some mitigation, it is not acceptable that with five serious floods occurring in the last decade, the issue has not been addressed comprehensively," Costello said.
CARLOW MOTHER GETS 5 YEARS FOR KILLING
A mother-of-nine who pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of her partner in Carlow has been given a five-year custodial sentence.
The Carlow Nationalist reports that Anne Berry, 43, admitted killing 36-year-old Anthony Riordan at his home in Barrow Mills, Graiguecullen in the early hours of June 5, 2009.
At a sitting of the Central Criminal Court in May, Berry pleaded not guilty to Riordan's murder but guilty to manslaughter. Prosecuting counsel Pauline Walley SC informed the court that the manslaughter plea was acceptable to the director of public prosecutions. Justice Garrett Sheehan handed down a five-year sentence before remanding Berry in custody.
"It's hard to see how this case could not have had a non-custodial outcome," said the judge.
The judge noted that Berry had been in a three-month relationship with Riordan and she had a tendency to enter abusive relationships. He also noted that Berry reported earlier that evening to gardaí that she had been assaulted on the day of the incident but it appeared the deceased "posed no threat to the accused at the time of his death."
The court heard that throughout Berry's dealings with gardaí she expressed genuine remorse that Riordan had died.
State pathologist Dr. Marie Cassidy, who conducted an autopsy on the body of Riordan, found the cause of death was a stab wound to the abdomen, which went through the liver and also penetrated a number of other vital organs causing blood loss. Cassidy also noted that Riordan, who was originally from Coolock in Dublin, was "very heavily intoxicated" at the time of his death.
CORK MIZEN WANTS DISADVANTAGED STATUS
A newly-formed organization has launched a campaign to have the Mizen classified as an economically disadvantaged area.
John D'Alton, chairman of the Schull Ratepayers Association, told the Southern Star the disturbing news that "some business people have decided to close their doors this year rather than pay the rates [local tax] assessment and will remain closed until the rates issue has been addressed."
Meanwhile, like other West Cork towns, he said, "several businesses have closed down permanently, while many more are just hanging on by a thread due to the drop in trade and rising costs."
