Residents demand action over ‘never-ending puddle’

PRAM pushers, road runners and dog walkers are just some of the people who have been caught out by the ‘never-ending puddle’ swamping a walkway behind Gortrush Park on Omagh’s Derry Road.

According to frustrated residents, the ‘stagant’ pool of water first appeared about a year ago and has remained ever since.

This week, Peadar McElhatton, who has lived in Gortrush Park for the last 30 years, contacted the UH to explain just how dire the situation has become.

“Ever since the arrival of the never-ending puddle, nobody uses the green, and most people try their best to avoid having to come up the walkway.”

The Derry Road man described how the flooded area shrinks during dry spells, only to fill up again at the first fall of rain.

“I’m half-expecting to look out the window some day and see a few boys casting their lines into it.”

Mr McElhatton put forward a few ideas on what is causing the flooding.

“It started after nearby trees were cut down. They must have helped hold the water,” he said.

“On top of that, the drainage system is made worse when hedge trimmings are not cleaned up after they are cut, instead being left to clog whatever escape routes the water would otherwise take.”

He then described how, one morning, workmen arrived to have a look at the flooded area.

But Mr McElhatton explained how, instead of getting to the root of the problem, they applied a ‘sticking plaster’ and built a bypass to divert people around the affected area.

“They seemed to be trying to make people walk through the flooded green.”

Fermanagh and Omagh District Council were contacted, but said the affected area is on land which is owned and maintained by the Department for Infrastructure (DfI).

Meanwhile, the DfI had not responded to a request for comment at the time of going to press.