Report says cost of Belfast's Broadway underpass flood last summer should fall on Highway Management Construction

The consortium that built the Broadway underpass in Belfast should pay the cost of flooding in August last year, according to a report by the Northern Ireland Audit Office.

The road, which forms part of M1/Westlink and M2 improvement schemes, was under 20 ft of water after heavy rain last summer. On 16 August motorists had to abandon their vehicles and the emergency services were called.


Westlink, Belfast

Now the Audit Office is calling on the Department of Regional Development to recoup the costs from the PFI consortium, Highway Management Construction.

Kieran Donnelly, auditor general, said indemnified costs incurred by the department in dealing with, or as a result of, the incident should be identified and recouped from the consortium.

The report also said: “costs incurred by other public sector organisations, for example costs toemergency services, should also be identified and the potential to recoup these costs investigated.”

Possible causes that contributed to the flooding highlighted in the report included:

  • The setting of a valve that restricted flow from the overflow structure
  • The design capacity of the drain crossing and flow patterns in the overflow structure
  • Potential blockage of the trash screen

Highway Management Construction was unavailable for comment.

Work began on the Westlink in January 2006 and the final phase was completed in May of this year.

Topics