People of Leitrim want more! 'Absolute chaos' in Leitrim caused by Storm Amy
Simon Harris says that additional contractors to manage forested areas where there are damaged or weakened trees and forestry-harvesting machines have been acquired
Last Sunday night, 400 premises in the south Leitrim region were without electricity after Storm Amy, Sligo/Leitrim TD Frankie Feighan said during a recent Dáil debate during which he took the opportunity to go head to head with Tánaiste Simon Harris on the serious impact that storms are having on residents stressing that "the people of south Leitrim want more".
While Deputy Feighan said that "power was restored more quickly this time", he stated that this was "only because other regions were less affected, allowing manpower to be redirected there."
He stressed: "People living in the area, with its considerable proliferation of forestry through which electricity lines run, realise this is the reason for the problem. Is there a role for the Commission for Regulation of Utilities in dealing with the ongoing failures affecting electricity and communications infrastructure?"
He continued that in August, he was made aware that after Storm Éowyn, ESB Networks had been conducting forestry, timber and vegetation clearance work.
He said: "I very much welcome this, but last weekend a mid-level orange warning over a few counties threw the whole system into disarray again. The people of south Leitrim want more; they want better access in order to ensure they will not be without power for most of a week again."
Mr Harris thanked Deputy Feighan for raising this issue stating that he was "very conscious that he represents a part of the country impacted by Storm Amy and that is still very much living with the fallout from Storm Éowyn and, to put it mildly, the absolute chaos it caused. People in Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal were particularly affected by Storm Amy, as were those in Mayo, Roscommon and Galway."
He continued: "I extend the sympathies of everybody in this House to the family of Mr. Connors from Letterkenny, who died due to a weather-related incident in Donegal. All our thoughts are with his family."
He said that preparations were put in place for Storm Amy and ESB put crews in position in advance. "At the peak of the storm, over 184,000 premises were affected by power outages. The Deputy is right about the ESB, which has taken a number of measures. It has taken on additional contractors to manage forested areas where there are damaged or weakened trees. Forestry-harvesting machines have been acquired and the ESB has sourced stocks of material to underpin repair capacity during the winter season. However, I will ask the relevant Minister to do exactly what the Deputy suggests, namely interact with the regulator of utility companies. The latter is the prudent thing to do at this stage."