Send in the army call to help Mayo Storm Éowyn victims

The Government has been urged to enlist army support and provide hotel accommodation to Mayo people still affected in wake of Storm Éowyn.

Mayo Sinn Féin TD Rose Conway-Walsh called on the government to utilise army personnel and that local hotel accommodation should be provided for those who are facing another week without heat, water, and light.

Thousands of people in Mayo are still without electricity while hundreds are still without running water six days after Storm Éowyn left a wave of devastation through the county.

While commending the workers who have succeeded in reconnecting many households and are now exhausted, the Mayo TD has responded to growing frustration at persistent delays in restoring electricity supply and water to thousands of families across Mayo.

“The delays in electricity and water reconnection to homes across Mayo following Storm Éowyn is simply unbearable,” the Erris-based TD said.

“I and my colleague, Cllr Gerry Murray are in touch with many vulnerable people with medical needs, young families with babies, children with additional needs and elderly individuals who are still without basic services.

“It is past time for the Government to delay any further, it's clear that there are not sufficient numbers of ESB and Uisce Éireann workers to deal with this situation, the reasons for this is a conversation for another day.

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“I am calling on the government to immediately introduce army staff to assist with clearing trees and other debris to enable technicians to get access to the fallen wires etc and get them fixed.

“I also think it is imperative that local hotel accommodation is made available to families with no water, heat, and electricity. This must be paid for by the central government for the duration of the outages.

“The cumulative effect of days without heat and the ability to cook warm food is devastating especially for vulnerable individuals. This is not a time for pondering, it is a time for emergency action.

“The government is yet again letting rural Ireland down – this would not happen if Dublin was without basic services for six days. Mayo people cannot stand another week of this. The money is there if it’s not going to be used now. When?

“This is not the time to penny pinch or get entangled in bureaucracy.”