RESIDENTS of Shannonvale and Ballinascarthy attended a packed public meeting last week to vent their anger over ongoing water outages.

The area was left high and dry for the past two Christmases, but residents say the problem extends far beyond that, disrupting daily life, farms, schools and businesses throughout the year.

Planned and unplanned outages have persisted, despite the installation of a pressure release valve near one frequently hit spot last October.

Jenny McCabe, who runs Ballinascarthy pre-school, said it was forced to close six times since August 2025 due to lack of water, including on the first two days of term, leaving parents to make alternative childcare arrangements. 

A privately funded €2,000 emergency buffer tank has since been installed at the pre-school to ensure backup supply for a day.

‘On the days without water I’ve had to contact up to 20 parents to say school is not opening,’ she said. ‘Legally I could not open without water for hygienic reasons. I’ve spent 17 years to build my reputation, which is now on the line.

‘I am at a breaking point here.’

Alan Dromey, chairperson of Shannonvale Community Group, said the outages forced firms at the West Cork Technology Park to close..

Minister Chrisopher O’Sullivan, who chaired the meeting, told residents their experiences would be used to strengthen calls for urgent pipe upgrades.

‘I’m sorry, on behalf of the State, this should not be happening to you,’ he said, promising to maintain pressure on UÉ.

Sean Conlon, who runs Balbrú Coffee with his partner Kellie, said the water cuts had a big knock-on effect on their business. It also meant their eight-month-old son had to go without sterilised bottles on the days the taps ran dry.

‘We’ve had to replace a boiler for €900 and an ice machine also needed repairing. Every machine is on a filtration system, which we’ve had to install because of the water quality. It’s been very frustrating.’

The minister said he was hopeful that once UÉ formally acknowledged the scale of the problem, a long-term fix could be in place within six months, pointing to a similar case in Adrigole.

Betty Hennessy, who looks after Ballinascarthy Community Hall, said it was left without water 12 times since May 2024. 

‘We are at the end of the line and Christmas Day was a nightmare. We had two events in the hall and had to use bottled water to keep the toilets and kitchen going. I wouldn’t like this to happen again,’ she said.

A spokesperson for Uisce Éireann said it acknowledges the concerns raised, adding: ‘We want to assure residents and business that addressing water supply issues in communities such as Ballinascarthy remains a priority however UÉ was ‘limited in what can be rehabilitated each year’.