John Gormless on Primetime

mike65 · 08-01-2010 02:04PM

Carlow CC calls in the army. Amazing what a little media pressure can do.

tobsey · 08-01-2010 02:11PM

Carlow has been getting the coldest temps in the country. One fella who runs a private weather station says he recorded -17 degrees. They also had to turn off water to 70% of homes between midnight and 7am. Sounds like they might need the army alright.

El Siglo · 08-01-2010 02:16PM

edanto wrote: »

By grit, do you mean salted grit for de-icing?

Who is the guy in Wicklow and if you have his contact details it might be an idea to call the Dublin City Council and pass his number on. I'm sure 11,000 tonnes would go a long way, but it's odd that someone would have a stockpile of it.

I didn't see Gormley on Prime Time, but he was pretty bad on Frontline about the flooding. At least someone from the government went on Prime Time, where the hell are the rest of them?

Oh he used to supply Dublin Corpo for 30 years (he's 50 years in the business) and they stopped getting stuff off of him when the economy grew and started importing salt. He's been contacting them but no answer. This is the same story all over the country, quarry companies are offering cheap or free grit (sand and salt), they're contacting the local authorities, the local authorities aren't taking their calls, they're not replying to emails, they're not spending the money.

spank_inferno · 08-01-2010 02:40PM

Why is "bring out the Army" the solution of so many in this country for so many problems??

- clear ice
- clear flood water
- clear demonstrations

What can the army do what the councils cant do?

mabey they can lob mortars onto roads to break up the ice (mind the pot-holes)!

I think the council workers are doing well considering the pathetic resourcing and planning of their superiors.

Tony EH · 08-01-2010 03:43PM

The Army can offer manpower, equipment and organisation.

minikin · 08-01-2010 03:51PM

and flamethrowers!

skelliser · 08-01-2010 04:01PM

guy just on liveline, he has 11,000 tonnes of sand/grit in wicklow! no one from dublin city council has contacted him.
he was on yesterday as well, still no contact from any council.

this country is a joke!

spank_inferno · 08-01-2010 04:05PM

Tony EH wrote: »

The Army can offer manpower, equipment and organisation.

Indeed your right and it may be usefull in certain circumstances.

But however many willing hands you have & competent commanders to lead them, its the failings at the top that would limit their impact considerably.

The main roads need ploughs & gritters/salters which I doubt the army have.
On top of that they need supplies of grit/salt which the government say is running out.

I dont doubt the army would be most usefull at specific small scale tasks
like getting supplies through to stranded homesteads.

But we shouldnt overstate their potential impact.

also +1 on the flamethrowers FTW

Morlar · 08-01-2010 04:06PM

skelliser wrote: »

guy just on liveline, he has 11,000 tonnes of sand/grit in wicklow! no one from dublin city council has contacted him.
he was on yesterday as well, still no contact from any council.

this country is a joke!

Must not be eco friendly, fairtrade grit then.

monkeypants · 08-01-2010 04:14PM

spank_inferno wrote: »

What can the army do what the councils cant do?

Storm Leinster House and put them all up against a wall?

Tony EH · 08-01-2010 06:17PM

skelliser wrote: »

guy just on liveline, he has 11,000 tonnes of sand/grit in wicklow! no one from dublin city council has contacted him.
he was on yesterday as well, still no contact from any council.

this country is a joke!

Sand/grit is not really the best solution though and can actually be dangerous. It causes skidding too.

By far the best thing for a snow/ice covered road is salt. The sodium melts the snow.

Tony EH · 08-01-2010 06:19PM

spank_inferno wrote: »

Indeed your right and it may be usefull in certain circumstances.

But however many willing hands you have & competent commanders to lead them, its the failings at the top that would limit their impact considerably.

The main roads need ploughs & gritters/salters which I doubt the army have.
On top of that they need supplies of grit/salt which the government say is running out.

I dont doubt the army would be most usefull at specific small scale tasks
like getting supplies through to stranded homesteads.

But we shouldnt overstate their potential impact.

also +1 on the flamethrowers FTW

But at least that's movenment on SOMETHING as opposed to NOTHING.

I wouldn't underestimate the value of supply delivery and other "small" tasks to people in rural areas.

Morlar · 08-01-2010 06:28PM

Tony EH wrote: »

But at least that's movenment on SOMETHING as opposed to NOTHING.

I wouldn't underestimate the value of supply delivery and other "small" tasks to people in rural areas.

They have been doing some work today acc rtenews;

11.52am The Defence Forces has deployed Army assets to assist the Civil Authorities during the severe weather conditions:

Newbridge: 10 x Personnel, 1 6x6 Truck
Maynooth: 10 x Personnel, 1 6x6 Truck
Clane: 10 x Personnel, 1 6x6 Truck
Enniscorthy: Assisting District Nurse reaching isolated patients.
Galway: Assisting Palliative Care Nurse reaching isolated patients.

&

3:50pm: Leitrim County Council says the Army will be deployed from tomorrow (Saturday) to grit foothpaths initially and then assist with gritting in rural areas.

Morlar · 29-01-2010 01:46PM

Saw this article today which reminded me of this gormley interview on primetime where he was referred to as the minister for snow and insisted that councils did not want army assistance.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/motors/2010/0127/1224263200976.html

THE ARMY WAS not deployed to clear or grit streets in the capital during the recent cold weather because the National Emergency Response Committee decided against sending in troops, Dublin city manager John Tierney has told members of the city council.

The assertion, contained in a report on the city’s response to the cold snap, would appear to be in conflict with Minister for Defence Willie O’Dea – who is also chairman of the Government’s Office of Emergency Planning – who told the Dáil last week that “all assets, resources and capabilities of the Defence Forces throughout the country were made available to provide assistance as required”.

Thousands of motorists faced delays during freezing conditions earlier this month and many more were forced to leave their cars overnight in the city. Side roads were particularly affected as shortages of salt ensured that only national routes, main bus corridors and heavily trafficked roads were passable.

Responding to questions in the Dáil last week Mr O’Dea said the Army had been available for a wide range of operations to assist State organisations, from the HSE to local authorities, but he maintained the local authorities “were very slow in asking for any assistance. They did not appear to appreciate that the crisis was a local crisis to be dealt with at local level.”

Mr O’Dea pointed out that the Army had responded positively to requests for assistance for help in “the gritting of roads and junctions, at the request of the local authorities, in counties Kildare, Meath, Leitrim”.

But Tierney told councillors: “We have been asked why the Army has not been called in to help within the city. I am representing the County and City Managers Association on the National Emergency Response Committee and attended meetings on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and again today. We raised this matter but this is a countrywide issue and Army resources are limited when spread across the entire country and when rosters are taken into account. Therefore the committee decided that it was best to retain Army resources as much as possible to assist with health services and rescue services. Only very limited Army resources have been used for gritting around the country.”

A spokeswoman for Mr O’Dea said the line manager in charge of the National Emergency Response Committee was Minister for the Environment John Gormley. A spokesman for Mr Gormley said no request had been made by Mr Tierney who, he said, had raised the issue for the purposes of a discussion.

John Gormless on Primetime

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