4 days ago
Calls for Eir to remove abandoned phone wires in Galway
Today at 08:55
Non-functioning phone wires appear to be abandoned in countryside areas after Storm Eowyn and Galway County councillor Sean Broderick calls them 'dangerous and disgraceful'.
The storm caused massive wind damage throughout county Galway including phone wires and power lines. Cllr. Broderick has called on telecommunications company Eir to clean up abandoned phone wires throughout rural areas particularly Athenry and Monivea.
Restoration efforts are still under way in those areas after the storm and recently saw increased funds to assist in those efforts the Irish Independent reported.
Cllr Broderick claims that when Eir contractors came to replace the lines, they failed to remove the old wires and instead 'dropped them in ditches, on roadsides, and in people's gardens.'
'In some cases, wires have been left hanging dangerously low across farm gateways, making it difficult or even impossible for tractors and machinery to access fields. It's disgraceful and it's unsafe.' Cllr Broderick said.
Immediate action was requested by the councillor to resolve the concern prior to hedge-cutting season as 'contractors will be reluctant to go near these hanging wires'.
'The wires are no longer in use — that much is clear — but it is not acceptable to leave them littering the countryside like discarded rubbish. I am calling on Eir, ComReg, and the Department of Environment to intervene and ensure this mess is cleaned up without delay.'
Contacted by the Irish Independent, Eir responded that they have no record of Cllr Broderick's enquiry on their general database or in the private line to local councillors. Without an Eircode that pertains to property affected by the abandoned phone lines, locating any complaints, or carrying out services, is difficult.
Eir did explain that certain challenges can be faced if old phone lines are enclosed around over-grown shrubs, as that is not the responsibility of the company, or if the lines are on private property where permission would nee to be sought to remove the broadband wires.
Cllr Broderick said: 'Galway's countryside is not a dumping ground. These communities deserve better than this careless treatment. Someone must take responsibility — and they must take it now.'
At the time Cllr Broderick says he made the complaint to Eir, damage from the storm was at an all-time high and the enquiry was far more general to the Athenry-Oranmore area than to specific locations.
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
