The market town of Skibbereen in west County Cork had been the victim of significant flooding over many years, most notably the flood events of November 2009 caused widespread damage and hardship. This flood relief scheme was completed in 2019 by Jons Civil Engineering Company Ltd, reducing flood risk for inhabitants and businesses in line with best practice, facilitate future amenity walks and public spaces along the river banks and enhance the public realm in the town centre.
The works included a combination of flood walls (3.7km) and embankments (2.5km) in combination with in-channel improvements, local stormwater pumping and maintenance plans. We constructed a 1.1m high glass floodwall, single leaf hinged floodgates and demountable barriers at various locations. We installed and commissioned 2 no. storm water pumping stations as part of the scheme. Works involved the vertical realignment of sections of existing local roads to raise top surface above the flood defence level and the construction of new surface water sewers groundwater pipes and associated manholes.
Major Technical Challenges overcome on the project included:
- Marginal structural stability of existing quay walls and adjacent structures
- Confined working area within the town centre
- Geotechnical Challenges
Various design solutions were adopted to overcome these challenges including, earthen embankments containing sheet piled cut-off cores; physical separation of river flows from groundwater flow paths and optimising foundation design.
Cork County Council and Office of Public Works
Skibbereen, County Cork
RPS
Main Contractor and PSCS
