Social Democrats leader joins call for reopening of Ballincollig fire station  

THE Social Democrats leader, Holly Cairns TD, has added her voice to calls for the reopening of Ballincollig fire station.

Ms Cairns made her comments during a visit to Ballincollig last week, where she met with the party’s Cork City South West local election candidate, Ciarán McCarthy.

"I understand, from Ciarán, that the fire station has been closed since 2021, a decision that seems to defy all logic. It is simply wasteful that this modern, three-bay station has been lying idle for all these years. The station was previously staffed by retained firefighters, but, surely, a bustling town with a population of 20,000 people should justify a full-time fire service," said Ms Cairns.

“As Cork City Council has been unable to recruit more retained firefighters, the station has remained shut and Ballincollig has had to rely on cover from Anglesea Street, which is 12 minutes away. This is putting residents and businesses in the town at risk in the event of an emergency," she added.

Mr McCarthy said: “I really appreciate Holly’s support for our long-running campaign to have Ballincollig fire station reopened and upgraded to a full-time service.

“The station closed just two years after Ballincollig came under the control of Cork City Council. Despite promises that local services would not be affected by the transfer, our worst fears have since been realised.”

 He said two recruitment campaigns by the city council to attract retained firefighters had been unsuccessful. 

"This was largely due to a stipulation that recruits must live within 2km of the station, something that is difficult if you are only receiving a part-time wage and face paying high rents in Ballincollig," said Mr McCarthy.

“This is going to be a major issue in Ballincollig, in the run-up to the local elections, and I want to assure the community of my unwavering commitment to seeing the fire station reopened on a full-time basis," he added.

In September, a Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) proposal accepted by Cork city firefighters did not provide for the reopening of Ballincollig fire station.

The proposal, which was accepted by 72% of those balloted, was to see the introduction of a ‘fourth pump’, and that would be crewed out of the fire brigade’s Anglesea St headquarters.

At the time, firefighter and Siptu shop steward, Billy Crowley, described the WRC proposals as “a step in the right direction”, and he thanked the people of Ballincollig who had supported the firefighters’ campaign and who had held protests outside the closed fire station.

Mr Crowley said that Cork city firefighters understood the feeling among the people of Ballincollig that the station should be reopened, but there would need to be “a data-driven case for it. And that will require patience”.