Massive disruption caused in Offaly and North Tipp by worst storm in decades

MASSIVE disruption and damage across Offaly and North Tipperary was caused by the worst storm in decades on Friday.
Many homes and businesses were without power and water because of the storm's ferocity, hundreds of trees were felled and there was considerable infrastructural damage, including fallen slates and devastated sheds. Thankfully, no one has been seriously injured or worse, in the region.
At the time of writing (Tuesday January 28th) many homes continue to be without electricity and water.
Offaly County Council’s Severe Weather Alert Team and Local Co-ordination Group reconvened on Monday to discuss the ongoing activities required in Offaly post Storm Éowyn.
Chaired by Chief Executive, Anna Marie Delaney, the meeting was attended by representatives from An Garda Siochána, the HSE and the ESB. The meeting reviewed the severe weather response and requirements, providing helping where needed. The ESB reported the significant challenges being faced by its crews dealing with an unprecedented number of faults on the network in Offaly and all across the country.
Additional crews are being brought in from overseas to deal with the scale of repairs required. The Gardai and the HSE both confirmed that they had no information regarding vulnerable persons on their lists in Offaly who remain without contact, support or resources.
Co-ordinating a local level response to the needs of people who have been significantly impacted by the storm, Offaly County Council has contacted local community centres who are providing support in areas experiencing power outages. The Chief Executive expressed thanks to those centres who had opened their doors to those affected to provide showers, charging facilities, tea, coffee and water.
On Friday evening Deputy John Clendennen, on social media, praised the Offaly County Council teams for their very hard work. “They have been clearing fallen trees from roadways all day, prioritising primary roads. Any trees that were not cleared will be taken care of tomorrow, if there’s any in your area please let me know.
“There are still many areas across the county that are without electricity, but it has been a phenomenal effort by the ESB to reinstate the network considering the level of damage and disruption caused by Storm Éowyn.
“A massive thank you to Offaly County Council, ESB and Emergency Services personnel for keeping us safe through the worst storm in over 60 years.”
On Monday Deputy Clendennen also praised the Gardaí because they had told him that the community policing team were willing to visit and assist any vulnerable people across the area that might be impacted by Storm Éowyn.
On Friday morning a power outage was reported at 3.45am in the Syngefield area of Birr town, which meant 468 customers were without power. A 3.53am an outage was reported in Riverstown Birr which affected 21 customers. At 10.12am at Dallow in the Birr – Banagher road area another outage was reported, this time affecting a massive 4,700 customers. In Kinnitty 536 customers had been without power since 2.23am; in Banagher 500 had no electricity and in Lumcloon 958.
On Friday fallen trees in Birr Town were reported in Hillside, Military Road, Gallows Hill (where a large beech tree badly damaged an old stone wall), Bulfin Park (a tree damaged a wall).
Trees were also blocking many roads in the wider region including Clareen to Killyon, Belmont to Cloghan and Corolanty to Tubbrid (in the Shinrone area).
Independent Offaly TD Carol Nolan has delivered scathing criticisms of Ireland's Infrastructure following the storm.
Deputy Nolan said even allowing for the relatively rare nature of the event, it was an ''international embarrassment.
''This event, which lasted a little over 24 hours has brought the country to its knees, while leaving hundreds of thousands of homes exposed to a prolonged absence of energy of any kind,'' said Deputy Nolan. ''Clearly the workers in our local authorities and in the ESB have gone above and beyond and I commend them for their heroic work to restore power and facilities to those impacted by the storm. But at this stage it is simply tragic and indeed infuriating that every time we have a significant weather event our networks essentially collapse.
''Where is the evidence that we are ready to future-proof our systems against further collapses of this kind? It is just not good enough that we must rely on generator capacity being brought in from other EU member states.
''I know from the emails and calls that I received through Friday, Saturday and Sunday, that there is enormous frustration out there in Offaly and beyond; not so much regarding the nature of the response from utilities workers, but more so about how we keep finding ourselves being put in this position as a country.
''We are a country awash with billions in exchequer revenue and yet despite this the perception persists, with clear justification, that we cannot even get the basics right. That has to change.'' 
“A lot of homes and businesses are without power in Offaly,” stated Deputy Tony McCormack on Friday morning, “and some are with limited power.”
Water outages were reported in a number of areas, including Kinnitty where the pumping station wasn't working because of the lack of electricity. A water tank was placed in the village for people to use.
On Saturday afternoon it was announced that Uisce Éireann teams were on the ground striving to restore the water supply in Rhode, Daingean and Walsh Island. They had also supplied a temporary water supply to tide people over until normal service resumed.
On Monday an official statement said there was still considerable disruption across the county. The ESB said that Estimated Restoration Times will continue to be updated on www.PowerCheck.ie as the restoration continues to progress. The ESB said weather conditions may impact on the restoration work.
Deputies Clendennen and McCormack said support was being received from Great Britain and the Irish government had requested further support from electricity network operators across Europe.
The ESB is advising customers to  sign up for its “Keep me Notified” service for power outages on  www.PowerCheck.ie  to receive status updates directly.  To sign up enter your  Eircode  and the mobile number associated with your account.   
On Monday the ESB said it had been  made aware  of  scam  text messages purporting to come from ESB Networks. “We ask that customers do not engage directly,  do not share any personal information if asked, and block and report the suspicious number if necessary,” a company statement said.
“We acknowledge the disruption to family and commercial life the damage from the storm  causes and  thank customers across the country who remain without power for their patience as our crews work to safely restore power.”
For humanitarian assistance, such as Basic Needs (food, clothing and personal items); replacement of essential household items (white goods, furniture); long term repair assistance (plastering, wiring, reflooring etc) contact 0818 607080.
On Sunday evening Cllr Peter Ormond pointed out that despite the best efforts of ESB Networks, there were still a number of households without electricity. Some of the affected areas were Towra, Rossamine, Quakerstown, Cangort, Fivealley, Kinnitty, Lumcloon, Banagher, Cloghan, Dunkerrin. “These households are now three days without electricity,” he stated, “and I encourage people to reach out to those without electricity in terms of hot water, showers, storage of food, etc. I want to thank the ESB Network employees for their work over the last three days. They have worked way beyond their call of duty to assist everyone and that will continue over the next week. We are grateful for their efforts and their call to public service.”
Head of Water Operations at Uisce Éireann Margaret Attridge noted that while positive progress had been made, the number of people experiencing loss of water supply due to power outages may increase as reservoir levels drop. “This unprecedented storm event has had a severe impact on our water and wastewater network nationwide. Our crews are on the ground in all impacted areas working to restore water service as quickly as possible but given the extent of the damage to the power network, it may take some time before full service is restored everywhere. We ask for the public’s continued patience during this challenging time.
“In locations where water supplies have been impacted for longer periods, we are deploying alternative water supplies. Details of these supplies and their locations will be posted across our website and social media channels as they become available.”
Also on Sunday it was announced that a GoFundMe campaign had been organised for Oliver T. Reynolds, because he is seeking help to rebuild after suffering significant damage from the Storm. The storm destroyed a large storage shelter that he had constructed, which had been storing his cherished vintage cars. Despite battling the storm until 5am, the shelter was damaged beyond repair, leaving Oliver devastated.
In his current situation, the shelter was a vital resource, providing both storage and a place to work, and it was all he could afford. With any donations, Oliver said he plans to rebuild by constructing a heavy-duty shed or garage that can withstand future storms and securely store his belongings. So far, €205 has been raised of the €2,000 target. https://www.gofundme.com/ f/w8yf9x-help-me-rebuild .