Concern that Portlaoise elderly slipping on muck may break a hip
Rain flooded footpaths in a Portlaoise estate are forcing older people into slippy muck that could cause a broken hip, says a local councillor.
The two poorly drained footpaths are in the large Kilminchy housing estate, at The Green.
Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley fears that an older person might slip and fall trying to walk around the floods.
She has requested Laois County Council to improve drainage, tabling a motion to the March meeting of Portlaoise Muncipal District.
"A lot of elderly live there. They go around the green to the shops and the pub. Urban rain runs onto the path. It's just not passable. Some go on the grass to avoid the path and it has gone mucky. If someone fell especially an elderly person they could break a hip," she outlined.
Cllr Dwane Stanley adds that a gazebo at The Green, used by older residents for summer events, has been damaged and is in need of repair.
"If there is any help we could give them, there is an active residents association doing good work," she said.
In reply, Portlaoise MD engineer Wes Wilkinson said that his office will now carry out drainage works next to the two footpaths in The Green, Kilminchy.