‘Massively urgent’ need for investment in Downpatrick after Quoile Bridge cracks

There is a “massively urgent” need for investment in flood defences in Downpatrick after a crack has appeared in the Quoile Bridge, Alliance MLA Patrick Brown has said.

Yesterday, the bridge, connecting Downpatrick to Killyleagh, was closed after a crack appeared between the wall and road surface of the bridge, and a stone on one of the pillars became dislodged.

Mr Brown said the damage to the bridge is thought to have been caused by pressure from recent flooding, and that, despite the emergency funding, the need for long-term investment is “massively urgent”.

He said: “We’ve got the 15 million there, a substantial chunk of that will be going towards supporting businesses in Downpatrick. But we can’t forget about the need to invest in our infrastructure urgently as well”.

Peter Mullan is a Downpatrick resident whose home had been badly damaged during floods.

He claims that a lack of maintenance to the bridge and river had put his home in jeopardy.

“It ended up with my entire house was under two inches or more of water, just enough to completely destroy the furniture in my lounge, all my downstairs carpets, all my wood floors in my kitchen, the new wood floors in the rest of my downstairs and also the new wooden doors that I had fitted just a matter of a few months ago, they’re destroyed with water coming up the bottom edge,” he said.