Households are to receive advice on how to prepare for being without essential services for 72 hours as part of Government planning for the next Storm Éowyn.
Arrangements for the rapid establishment of community support centres are also to be formalised to replace the ad-hoc emergency hubs set up in the aftermath of last January’s storm.
Communications by State agencies are to be improved after it became apparent people were “confused” about who to contact for help.
Fire brigades, the National Ambulance Service and coast guard are to get satellite-based backup communications after their two-way radio systems were knocked out of action.
RM Block
The moves are recommended by the Storm Éowyn review group established by the Government to examine the response to the most severe storm the country has experienced.
At the peak of the gale, 768,000 customers were without power and 2,052,100 mobile customers may have had little or no reception.*
Desperate to find out when power might be restored, people consulted ESB Networks’ Power Check website 12 million times.
They also made 270,000 calls to the utility, 4,900 of which were classified as ‘extreme danger’ calls because they reported fallen live wires.
About 130,000 customers were left without water and hundreds of small water-supply and wastewater treatment plants were disrupted.
More than 380 emergency response hubs were created as local authorities and community and voluntary groups turned schools and other public buildings into centres where people could access water, hot food and phone charging.
[ Ireland unprepared for another Storm Éowyn as season of extreme weather loomsOpens in new window ]
The Community Welfare Service received more than 80,000 claims for help with emergency cash and 34,000 claims were awarded under the humanitarian assistance scheme.
“Storm Éowyn tested both local and national preparedness for responding to severe weather events,” the review group said.
“The findings indicate that the response was effective in safeguarding the public during the storm.
“However, the prolonged restoration period following Storm Éowyn led to very difficult conditions for communities and responders in many parts of the country.”
It noted that while 70 per cent of electricity customers had power restored within 72 hours, and 90 per cent within a week, some people had to wait 18 days.
Keith Leonard, director of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management (NDFEM), which headed the review, said many of the issues exposed by the storm were already being addressed.
A draft guide on establishing and operating community support centres had been drawn up, Uisce Éireann had acquired extra generators for supply and treatment plants and satellite communications equipment was being procured.
“The NDFEM stands ready to work with all stakeholders to deal with any adverse weather events this year,” he said.
A Government spokesperson also said the lessons from Storm Éowyn were already being incorporated into extreme weather preparations.
Community support centres had been activated at eight locations in Donegal in response to Storm Amy earlier this month, they said.
[ Storm Éowyn costs ESB €100m in network repairsOpens in new window ]
However, the review says the public as well as State services needs to be better prepared.
“A programme similar to Be Winter Ready should be put in place to support household resilience and to encourage societal resilience within communities with a planning assumption for the loss of essential services for 72 hours,” it says.
The review recommends that licensed entertainment events should include a condition that there must be planning for severe weather, “including full closure and appropriate notification”.
It also says ways need to be found for service providers to better share information about vulnerable customers and clients.
“There is a high degree of reluctance by organisations to take on additional responsibility for data sharing of any personal detail on vulnerable persons,” it said.
* This article was edited on October 22nd
