CONFIDENTIAL BANK documents have been discovered dumped in the same Co Cork landfill where hospital patients’ medical records were found in May.
Thousands of AIB bank documents, believed to include personal information contained in loan applications, were unearthed by contractors clearing the landfill in Glounthaune, Co Cork, in preparation for the construction of the Midleton railway line.
AIB was told about the discovery yesterday afternoon.
Work stopped at the site between Midleton and Carrigtwohill in May when Southern Health Board documents, including patient files dating back to the 1980s, were found dumped in the former Killacloyne landfill.
It is not clear how long the bank documents have been buried, but it is likely that they are from the same era as the hospital files.
The dump was a legal waste disposal site, Iarnród Éireann said.
Hospital records from Cork Regional Hospital (now Cork University Hospital) and St Finbarr’s Hospital were found at the disused landfill site.
After the May discovery, a security fence was built around the site and guards were posted.
Work at the dump resumed yesterday. Almost immediately, more documents were found.
An AIB spokesman confirmed that the bank had been told about the discovery, but said bank staff had not yet had a chance to examine the papers. The bank would begin an investigation into the find, the spokesman added.
Iarnród Éireann said the discovery would not cause major delays to construction of the line, as work could continue elsewhere.