Flooding
The Straight is very flat and subject to both tidal and river flooding. It occurred regularly during the winter, when the swollen rivers burst due to heavy rain, and the road was also affected by spring tides. A contributory factor is the confluence of two rivers with the Lee at Carrigrohane. The Shournagh joins the Lee at Crubeen Bridge on the Lee Road, and a smaller river, the Carrig, joins the Lee at the junction under Carrigrohane Castle, and is forded by what was known as Cromwell’s Bridge. The worst affected area of the Straight is the centre, near Inichigaggin Lane, so that residential and commercial development has been limited to the eastern and western ends of the Straight. The building of the Carrigadrohid and Iniscarra Dams has enabled some control to be put on the flooding so it is now not as severe.
The most dramatic floods occurred in the years 1870, 1916 and 1962. The flood of 1916 was the largest, reaching Inichigaggin Lane and having a height of 28 feet (8.5 m) above sea level. The 1962 flood was a tidal flood, which flooded the city centre of Cork, including the Courthouse, to a height of 19 feet (5.8 m) above sea level.
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