According to Jim Hegarty, one of the victims of the flooding in Cork in 2009 he would be still living in a caravan if it wasn’t for the assistance and support he received from the Society of St Vincent De Paul.
Jim recently discovered that the house had more structural damage which was caused by the floodwater from the River Lee in the severe flooding in 2009. At that time Jim had no house insurance as he could not afford it and so could not repair the damage and so contacted the SVP in Cork.
The Society paid for the repair of the interior walls and the floor and also brought him a new cooker and washing machine which had all been covered with up to three and a half feet of water. Due to health issues and a now highly dangerous mould growing on the walls because of the dampness Jims doctor told him he had to move out of the house as he could potentially die, so Jim moved into a caravan.
When his floor caved in last September due to the dampness Jin feared he would have to again move in to his small caravan. The Society found out about the latest damage and came to Jim’s assistance again. Work began in the New Year to replace the timber floors and pour concrete.
Cork Regional President, Brendan Dempsey said that the Society was still helping people since the flooding as many households still cannot get insurance cover. “A fifth of the city is now designated as a floodplain so people are either being refused cover or are being forced to pay five times the price and so can’t afford to pay it” said Brendan. He has written to everyone but has not been successful in getting a positive response.
The Society will continue to help people affected by the flooding and people in financial difficulty as best as they can.