Collentine slates lifebuoy vandals as 'disgrace'

Criticism of the fact that lifebuoys are regularly removed from their berths along the canal was made at the November monthly meeting of the Municipal District of Mullingar Kinnegad (MDMK).

The subject was raised by Cllr Bill Collentine, who asked if a solution could be found.

“They’re not there when people want them: some of them are thrown in the canal; some are gone on down along the canal; some are there with the ropes brokeN off them. It’s an absolute disgrace what’s going on,” he said.

The written reply to Cllr Collentine stated that in accordance with Water Safety Ireland guidance, ringbuoys are required to be inspected and maintained on a periodic basis.

“MDMK have an inspection system in place whereby relevant district staff inspect the ringbuoys and implement follow up maintenance as required,” the reply continued, stating that these inspections are recorded using the MDMK ringbuoy inspection form.

Cllr Collentine was informed that the ringbuoys at the canal are inspected weekly and defects are followed up immediately.

“Each ringbuoy box is equipped with a ringbuoys.ie sticker informing members of the passing public that if they notice a defect to the equipment, they can report a defect to a national website,” the response stated, going on to explain that the system then sends an automated report to the county council, and this is followed up by the district and the defect rectified.

Cllr Collentine retorted that regular checks just might not be enough: “There’s times it can go on for months that they are not there,” he said, adding that a solution has to be found.

He asked that the council consider investing in buoys that take a photograph of anyone who removes one from its holder.

“That would stop people messing around with them, and they could be prosecuted,” he said. “This is a serious question. It’s a safety issue. People can be drowned over this.”

It was time, Cllr Collentine said, to stop giving the same answer.

“I think we need to sit down and see if there’s a different type; see what other towns are using, and have a look at them and move things forward.”

Director of services David Jones agreed it was a serious issue, which was why, he said, there is a weekly inspection system in place to check on the nine ringbuoys along the canal.

He said whenever an issue is detected, it is addressed immediately.

“So it’s just important to make that point that as a district we take this role very seriously and our responsibility in relation to that, and I believe that we do execute that in accordance with the guidelines,” he stated.

Mr Jones said that he understands Dublin City Council is examining the use of ringbuoys with an automatic detection system, and the MDMK will keep an eye on this.