Freezing temperatures of -8C / 17.6F are set to continue throughout the day, heightening concerns for those in isolated communities who are running out of food and water.
People left without power have been assured by the ESB, Ireland's state-owned electricity company, that they can use facilities in nearby hotels, particularly in parts of Kerry, Limerick and Tipperary, as crews work to restore electricity to around 4,000 customers.
"We obviously appreciate that this is an incredibly difficult time for our customers, particularly in those worst-affected areas," ESB Networks regional manager Siobhán Wynn told RTÉ Radio.
"So, in an effort to try and provide some support to them, we’ve made arrangements with local hotels where people can go to refresh and get a hot meal, recharge their mobile phones.
"We’ve contacted all of the customers directly in those areas so we would have called them yesterday to let them know about this service and to avail of this service they just need to provide their MPRN [Meter Point Reference Number], that’s their account number on their electricity bill," she said.
Kilfinane, Co. #Limerick #sneachta @MetEireann @rtenews pic.twitter.com/pRlUfqqYq2
— Dr Paul O'Brien (@FearStairLmk) January 7, 2025
Red warning
Every county, besides Donegal, is on a status orange weather warning until 11am this morning, which will be followed by a yellow ice warning for the entire country lasting until 12pm on Friday.
But with up to 14 inches of snow in some of the worst-hit areas, questions have been asked as to why a status red warning wasn’t put in place for some counties. Thousands of people are now on their fifth day without electricity, meaning they cannot heat or cook in their own homes.
And despite the efforts of local authorities and the Defence Forces, road conditions have proven to be treacherous with trucks jack-knifing and motorists stuck in traffic for hours as the result of collisions.
Limerick TD Richard O’Donoghue, who brought a heavily pregnant woman to the maternity hospital earlier this week, told the Limerick Leader: "If this isn’t a red warning, I don’t know what is.
"Met Éireann [Irish meteorological service] has let Limerick down. In 2010, we got three or four inches of snow. I’m 54 years of age and we’ve never got this fall of snow. If people knew that we were getting that heavy fall of snow, do you think we would be prepared? Yes, we would.
"It looks like that if you’re outside of Dublin and are snowed in for days, you don’t matter. A red warning means that everyone is off the road, so if a red warning was given for Sunday they would have got everything out throughout Saturday. People would have worked through the night to get it done. Met Eireann have let Limerick down, they’ve let Kerry down, they’ve let parts of Cork down," he said.
This is going to take a while…… no electricity, no water #sneachta #Limerick pic.twitter.com/HrUomtmDAp
— Kildare Weather (@KildareMet) January 5, 2025
4,000 ESB customers remain without power
However, Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín believes those who live in colder climates in the EU must think we’re overreacting to our cold snap.
"While it’s very important that people drive carefully and look after their loved ones, temperatures of -4C is nothing really in the grand scheme of things," he said.
"There’s a danger that if we start giving out orange weather warnings for these type of temperatures, then people will ignore future weather alerts when there’s a real risk to people’s lives.
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"We’re getting calls from older people who are petrified to leave their houses because of an exaggerated threat to their health and wellbeing. Adults should be able to work out how frosty and cold it is and act accordingly. Our European cousins must be looking at us and thinking 'what are we like?'," he said.
Nevertheless, thousands of people mainly from Kerry, Cork, Limerick and Tipperary, have heavily relied on their communities to get them through the current period.
Sheehy’s Centra [groceries chain] in the Limerick town of Kilfinane was one such business that went above and beyond for its customers.
On Monday, the store’s electricity was cut off, meaning that it could not process any purchases made. However, its management decided to allow their loyal customers to take whatever they needed and pay for their items whenever the power came back.
One of the workers said: "There were queues all the way down the street when our power went out. We decided to write down everyone’s details and what they ordered in a book so they could come back to us the following day.
"It took a long time, but it was worth it. People in this community are very good in helping to clear the roads with their tractors and looking out for their neighbors. Today our stock is a bit better, but the minute the bread came in yesterday it was gone in an hour, along with the milk," she said.
Delivery drivers were also commended for getting supplies of bread and milk to grocery stores.
This photo from Meaneys @CentraIRL in Dromcolligher Co Limerick reminding us all that when you’re in need of a helping hand, a farmer is not too far away 👏🏻 #Sneachta pic.twitter.com/gEtaGwOTWB
— Shane McAuliffe 🐷✈️ (@ShaneMcAuliffe1) January 7, 2025
14 inches of snow in some southern counties
The harsh conditions were no match for a dedicated local in Dromcollogher, Limerick, who used his tractor to deliver gallons of much-needed milk to Meaney’s Centra. The shop, which has been running low on essentials, regularly updates its customers through social media whenever a delivery is made.
One recent post read: "We have some water back in stock for people that are in need of it. Thanks to two local retired gentlemen for making the trip to Limerick to collect it."
Met Éireann has warned that Thursday will be "bitterly cold" with widespread frost, ice and patches of freezing fog. Meanwhile, Irish utility agency Uisce Éireann continued to work to restore water to customers in the worst-affected regions, mostly in counties Kerry, Limerick and Tipperary.
The National Emergency Coordination Group met on Wednesday morning to discuss the cross-department and agency response to sub-zero hazardous conditions.
The Dublin Region Homeless Executive has a free app and an online form so the public can alert them to any rough sleepers so that they can be offered a bed or other services.
National director of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management Keith Leonard said there has been "no let-up" in the bitterly cold weather.
"We are continuing to coordinate the responses by all agencies and local authorities to ensure the most appropriate responses and supports are happening at local level during these challenging conditions.
"If anyone knows a neighbor who is elderly, alone or who has mobility issues, please keep an eye out for them."
'An awful lot of calls' from older people during cold weather, say ALONE'https://t.co/mnUJx0Giut
If you or an Older Person you know is in need of support please call our National Support and Referral Line on 0818 222 024 pic.twitter.com/dVBJcUGQ6H
— ALONE (@ALONE_IRELAND) January 8, 2025
* This article was originally published on Extra.ie.
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