MEP urges EU support for storm-ready centres in Leitrim and north-west

“We are not prepared,” was a point MEP Maria Walsh made clear in a recent interview with the Leitrim Observer.​

She also emphasized the need to better prepare and equip community centers in the North-West for times of extreme weather with solar panels, showers, and generators. “That should be funded and supported by the EU,” she emphasized.​

Walsh, who was elected to represent Midlands–North-West for the second time in last year's European elections, was in Leitrim last week visiting the Junction Project in Ballinamore, the Island Theatre, and the Leitrim Women’s Network in Manorhamilton.​

The lack of preparedness for extreme weather was abruptly on display in Leitrim and across the North-West during Storm Éowyn, she says, highlighting the need to learn from what happened in counties like Leitrim and Roscommon, where thousands were left without power due to the damage caused by falling trees on power lines. 

“Our infrastructure is above ground, and that is not good enough anymore,” she says.​

According to Walsh, this is something that needs to be rectified to better deal with extreme weather. “We need the skill set to bring it underground. We need to make sure that no community, large or small, is cut off for 17, 18 days.”

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