⚠️ Storm Éowyn - Fri 24.01.25 (**Please read Mod Instruction in OP.**)

Pearse who? What are you on about?

The Irish media in general were hopeless. In an age where they scaremonger over the slightest thing, the one time we ACTUALLY needed a scaremongering, to be told 'this is something we've never seen before' they completely dropped the ball.

Newstalk was completely ridiculous. There was more talk about the 'misogyny' shown towards Verona Murphy than the storm. More 'We can't lose the 46 A cos it was in a song' nonsense than the storm.

There are people who've lost their entire businesses, overnight. Folks who died, one woman was on Upfront with Katie Hannon showing her house which now has a massive tree in the middle of the roof. She can't live there, her daughter has special needs and can't move back there, and the insurance won't cover much of the damage.

And she's sadly not an isolated case. There are people near where I am who've had trees fall on their houses or sheds. I know a some of this was unavoidable, but quite a lot of this should have been prepared for. And then the government went on holiday, for two weeks, knowing this was on the horizon.

To be fair you're worse than those local journalists. They're doing their job reporting on local news in Kilkenny. You are searching for news and headlines to be angry about, and complaining about the army for doing a job in Kilkenny, but there's no evidence at all in the article that this job was done post storm Eowyn.

Maybe you do your fact checking first and come back with the evidence.

From what you have posted there, I think your only legitimate gripe is with the government.

This is not a "new reality" - it's just a reminder of what can happen.

I suppose these things (gas ring/stove/open fire without reliance on electic pump) would have been common place in houses all across the country and particularily in areas where storms are common - the west of Ireland generally. Storms of the type we've just had a extremely rare thankfully but storms a few notches below it are common enough and have been for decades and I know growing up in the West that my father would have been well aware of how to manage without power and set the house up for it, as did many many houses. Modern building regs have somewhat removed some of these options and some foresight is needed - and depending on where you live, as you've said, you'll end up without power at varying stages in your life.

That said, I'd be consious enough myself of having certain items in my own house in the event of a power outage but am lucky enough to live in an area where outages are less frequent and when they do happen aren't as long, however we have a bottled gas hob, a stove and plenty water storage. But you need to be aware that these items (gas hob, stove/fire) can't just be rolled out once every now and again when needed. They need gas and solid fuel to run and you need to have those available year round if you want to use them, hoping that the hob will work once a year after being stored in a shed or that you'll find fuel for the stove when everyone else is looking for it etc isnt easy.

I said it before this storm, but the aftereffects of an event like this can go on for weeks (again, having seen similiar in my youth) and you do need to be prepared to suit your expectations.

I feel for those who are without power yet, particularily with young kids or the elderly - hopefully the crews will get them back online ASAP.

Do you think that everyone has a spare 50K plus to spend on these luxuries? And luxuries that don't always solve the issues brought up for multiple reasons.

this is open since Saturday, some of it is not means tested . if you're not covered by house insurance.

https://www.gov.ie/en/service/12e880-humanitarian-assistance-scheme-swa/

grey army helicopter flew down our valley low I assume checking lines or roads on sunday so they were in supporting then.

My parents house got their power back yesterday evening still some neighbours without power, hopefully today. I think most people have water again. Talking to farmers it was hard going carting buckets of water for cattle, and feeding them in the dark etc as most are part time here in south Sligo. My brother is still without power and so is his children's school. My brother is working from home in my house and my parents minding his children's. My broadband is faster then out at my parents thats why is not working from home out there. Our child minder is also without power so she's minding my gang in our house too. You take these things for granted until they are gone. I've lost count of the amount of people who have asked me about installing an generator change over switch.

If you are changing your car you might spend 50k on that. But sure it's on PCP so you don't notice

I remember some storms from before and this eowyn storm was by far the worst. I never saw as much damaged before as this one. I remember one tree toppled in my locality in the 90s and it was an older bigger tree. A few trees came down since then but nothing major. This storm has so many trees down and nearly every second neighbour has a tree down and it's so odd too. Even in some trees that were sheltered by walls, they even came down. Then there are other walls and fences and gutters down too. I never saw as much damage before.

Roof blown off a house in Connemara

The man hasn't even appeared on TV talking about it. But destruction in gaza and MM will.."we interrupt your schedule program to bring you this important update ftom the Taoiseach".

Politics is purely about optics. How do you think they get elected ffs.

Hi Cluedo,

How did things pan out? Have you had your amenities restored by now? Some unfortunate people in North midlands, Northwest and other places still without power, water & broadband, having an awful time of it.

And how do the people with out electric get to see the programme,nevermind it’s scheduled interruption?

You’re now going on here with the same old sensationalism as you were on the politics forum and answered there

How in the name of blazes can a government cope with or prepare for a100 mph wind that bent up and fell huge wind turbines made of 10’s of tonnes of steel?

Imagine a poor old Esb pole having to cope with that destructive power?

You seem to have power,were spreading misinformation on the politics forum about the NECG not meeting since before the storm and apparently can’t be bothered to ask your local councillors about local hubs,despite having power,phone and internet yourself

There are people here posting when they can get to the internet who have legitimate serious problems,you don’t,going on your politics forum posts anyway

https://irishplanningblog.wordpress.com/ruralhousing/

Here is an article from 2021 that sets out the problems.

"According to the Electricity Supply Board (ESB), the scattered and widespread distribution of rural populations means that Ireland has four times the European average of length of network per capita and the ratio of overhead lines to underground cables is 6:1 (180,000km – 4.5 times the circumference of the Earth). With so much overhead line exposed to weather and other events, there is a significant cost and challenge in maintaining an adequate and reliable electricity supply in rural areas. As noted by the ESB submission to the 2001 – 2005 Distribution Price Review:

“Continuity of supply on ESB’s network compares unfavourably with, for example, European and UK companies. This is in part due to the settlement pattern in Ireland, whereby individual dwellings, rather than cluster development, tend to be the norm. This gives rise to a higher length of network per Irish customer than is the case for any of their European counterparts.” (p.5)"

This can only be fixed by changing the settlement patterns and significantly curtailing one-off housing.

Not fit for purpose.