Latest news with #NorthernIrelandElectricity
The Independent
31-01-2025
- Climate
- The Independent
Terminally ill man among thousands without power a week after Storm Eowyn
A man receiving palliative care is among the 'miserable' residents affected as 8,000 homes remain without power in Northern Ireland a week after Storm Eowyn. Efforts to repair damaged power lines continue into a seventh day as thousands of homes across Northern Ireland are still waiting for their electricity supplies to be restored. Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) Networks said its more than 1,550 staff and contractors have been working 'tirelessly' to restore power, though some areas may not see electricity return until 10pm on Saturday. Emma Garrett, 43, from Mallusk in County Antrim, described the week-long power outage as 'miserable' and a 'nightmare'. Ms Garrett's father-in-law, Wilfred Garrett, 79, lives next door to her with her mother-in-law, and has heart failure and lives with diabetes. He relies on electricity to monitor his blood sugar levels and was 'given a diagnosis of a matter of months to live' by doctors over the Christmas period, according to his daughter-in-law. 'With type 1 diabetes, circulation is badly affected, so staying warm is really important,' Ms Garrett, chief executive of a social enterprise, told the PA news agency. 'He relies on electricity to notify him when his blood sugar levels change dramatically, so that obviously wasn't happening either with no power in his house.' She said NIE Networks 'don't seem to have prioritised' Mr Garrett and criticised the company for not doing more to support him. 'They left him out a generator, but it wasn't fit for purpose … which means that it would really only turn on his TV and a couple of lights – it wouldn't turn on the heating system,' she said. Ms Garrett said she has spent hundreds on hotel rooms for herself, her two sons aged 11 and 14, and her mother-in-law and father-in-law – while her husband has remained at home, without lights and heating, to keep the property safe. 'We do have a stove which was able to heat one room, but we've no warm water, no means to cook food and it's dark, so it's been pretty miserable,' she said. She said she has thrown away 'around £300 worth of food' and has had to rely on hotel stays after the rest of her family were also impacted by power outages. 'We're having to buy food daily because we can't keep any food in the house. We can't cook, so we're having to rely on takeaways,' she said. Ms Garrett estimates she has spent more than £1,500 to cover the cost of three nights at their local hotel, food waste and other daily food purchases. She said she feels fortunate to have enough money to cover her expenses, but added she felt 'very nervous' for families 'who are really struggling, are living day to day, and who are having to rely on food banks'. She has urged NIE Networks to offer accommodation to vulnerable people and households on low income to compensate for the week-long power outage. 'They definitely should be prioritising people who are vulnerable, and perhaps people who are reliant on food banks, or people like my father-in-law who are medically unwell,' she said. 'They should be providing accommodation for them at this stage when they're seven days and no heat in their house.' Ms Garrett was told by her electricity provider to expect her power to be restored by 10pm on Saturday. In a statement on its website, NIE Networks said: 'We continue to work tirelessly to restore power to all those still affected across Northern Ireland. We have over 1,550 staff and contractors escalated, additional support from other countries and further support on the way. 'Over the coming days there may be occasions when householders experience interruption to their electricity supply as we undertake permanent repairs and work to restore all those impacted.'
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Terminally ill man among 8,000 homes without power a week after Storm Eowyn
A man receiving palliative care is among the 'miserable' residents impacted as 8,000 homes remain without power in Northern Ireland a week after Storm Eowyn. Efforts to repair damaged power lines continue into a seventh day as thousands of homes across Northern Ireland are still waiting for their electricity supplies to be restored. Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) Networks said its more than 1,550 staff and contractors have been 'tirelessly' working to restore power, though some areas may not see electricity return until 10pm on Saturday. Emma Garrett, 43, from Mallusk in County Antrim, described the week-long power outage as 'miserable' and a 'nightmare'. Ms Garrett's father-in-law, Wilfred Garrett, 79, lives next door to her with her mother-in-law, and has heart failure and lives with diabetes. He relies on electricity to monitor his blood sugar levels and was 'given a diagnosis of a matter of months to live' by doctors over the Christmas period, according to his daughter-in-law. 'With type 1 diabetes, circulation is badly affected, so staying warm is really important,' Ms Garrett, chief executive of a social enterprise, told the PA news agency. 'He relies on electricity to notify him when his blood sugar levels change dramatically, so that obviously wasn't happening either with no power in his house.' She said NIE Networks 'don't seem to have prioritised' Mr Garrett and criticised the company for not doing more to support him. 'They left him out a generator, but it wasn't fit for purpose… which means that it would really only turn on his TV and a couple of lights – it wouldn't turn on the heating system,' she said. Ms Garrett said she has spent hundreds on hotel rooms for herself, her two sons aged 11 and 14, and her mother-in-law and father-in-law – while her husband has remained at home, without lights and heating, to keep the property safe. 'We do have a stove which was able to heat one room, but we've no warm water, no means to cook food and it's dark, so it's been pretty miserable,' she said. She said she has thrown away 'around £300 worth of food' and has had to rely on hotel stays after the rest of her family were also impacted by power outages. 'We're having to buy food daily because we can't keep any food in the house. We can't cook, so we're having to rely on takeaways,' she said. Ms Garrett estimates she has spent more than £1,500 to cover the cost of three nights at their local hotel, food waste and other daily food purchases. She said she feels fortunate to have enough money to cover her expenses, but added she felt 'very nervous' for families 'who are really struggling, are living day to day, and who are having to rely on food banks'. She has urged NIE Networks to offer accommodation to vulnerable people and households on low income to compensate for the week-long power outage. 'They definitely should be prioritising people who are vulnerable, and perhaps people who are reliant on food banks, or people like my father-in-law, who are medically unwell,' she said. 'They should be providing accommodation for them at this stage when they're seven days and no heat in their house.' Ms Garrett was told by her electricity provider to expect her power to be restored by 10pm on Saturday. In a statement on its website, NIE Networks said: 'We continue to work tirelessly to restore power to all those still affected across Northern Ireland. We have over 1550 staff and contractors escalated, additional support from other countries and further support on the way. 'Over the coming days there may be occasions when householders experience interruption to their electricity supply as we undertake permanent repairs and work to restore all those impacted.' PA has contacted NIE Networks for comment, but it had not responded at the time of publication.
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Six days without power has been absolutely awful
A County Antrim mother-of-five who remains without power for a sixth day after Storm Éowyn has said it has been "absolutely awful". Nicola Graham, from Ballymena, and her children aged between eight months and 12-years-old have been "surviving with headlamps and candles" since a tree fell on their power line on Friday. Homes have been damaged and about 25,000 properties in Northern Ireland remain without power for a sixth day after high winds battered the UK and Ireland last week. Specialist engineers have arrived from across the UK to help restore power, but Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) has warned it could be Monday, 3 February, before all properties are reconnected. Ms Graham told BBC's Good Morning Ulster she has to boil a saucepan of water over her wood-burning stove to feed her eight-month-old a bottle. The rest of the family are relying on takeaway meals that cost £40 a night and "using the washing machine at shops", she said. "We are surviving with headlamps and candles," she said, adding that they have to recharge lamps and phones at school, work and in the car. "From 17:30 to bedtime, it's awful. We are all sitting in one room trying to keep heat and trying to entertain children. "You can't draw in the dark and play with your toys in the dark." 'We could see parts of the roof going past the kitchen window' Way to go yet in Storm Éowyn clean-up - NI secretary Jersey helps restore power in Northern Ireland Ms Graham said that because she is on the "priority list" due to her child having additional needs, NIE send her an hourly message saying the repair team is "on their way" and power will be restored by Saturday, 1 February. "I am supposed to have a check-in phone call from NIE everyday and I didn't have one yesterday to see how we were coping," she added. "They offered me a community centre in Roe Valley near Limavady, that's it. "It's going to be really tough. Our saving grace is that we're out at work." She said she would like "a bit of hope that they are doing something and we are not left in limbo". "The best outcome is that I would see an NIE van beyond my lane and having my wires up to connect the power supply back to my home." On Tuesday, Communities Minister Gordon Lyons pledged £1m to support communities and individuals affected by the storm. "Storm Eowyn has caused devastation, and my primary concern is the safety and well-being of all those affected, particularly children, the elderly and people with vulnerabilities," Mr Lyons said. Lyons said Stormont departments would do everything possible to help support those who have found themselves homeless and for those needing assistance. Earlier in the week, the first minister and deputy first ministers called on NIE to "step up" and provide a "goodwill payment" to those still without power. Ronan McKeown, from NIE, has said that conversations on compensation payments would continue between NIE, Stormont ministers, the Department for the Economy and Utility Regulator. Ms Graham said she believes NIE should be looking at goodwill payments now. "Every bit of food in the fridge is ruined and when the electric comes back on we will have to replace it." Ruadhrai O'Kane, who is part of the incident team for NIE Networks, told Good Morning Ulster that Monday, 3 February, is the most "realistic" date for the worst-affected customers to have their power restored. "We are trying to be as realistic as we can to try to give people time to make any arrangements they can," said Mr O'Kane. "We are doing all that we can to restore power to people as quickly as we can. We have meter readers going out to do checks with vulnerable customers and community assistant centres." He said that NIE has been getting support from other companies across Great Britain, while engineers have even arrived from Finland. "We probably have 1,400 people working tirelessly and flat out to restore electricity supply as quickly as we can... it's our primary focus at the minute." On the question of goodwill payments, he said, NIE are "engaging with multiple agencies to try and provide the support that we can". In the Republic of Ireland, more than 142,000 properties remain without supply, according to ESB Networks - down from a peak of about 768,000 on Friday morning. The storm has also affected water supplies in some parts of Northern Ireland. NI Water say that about 100 properties are still without water. The company said it hoped to get generators to a further 17 properties on Tuesday and that 360 vulnerable customers had water delivered to them. The aftermath of the storm has also affected schools, with some in Northern Ireland still closed on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the National Trust has said the storm "wreaked havoc" on its estates and gardens in Northern Ireland. It estimates that 10,000 trees in Mount Stewart, County Down, were "flattened" by hurricane force winds Winds of up to 90mph left Rowallane Garden in Saintfield "almost unrecognisable" with irreplaceable specimen trees permanently lost, some more than 250 years old, as well as rare and exotic species and rhododendrons planted by the estate's former owner, Hugh Armytage Moor, in the 1870s. Some of the trust's properties remain closed as the damage is assessed and clean-up work gets under way. NIE has said there are 11 Community Assistance Centres and more than 60 drop-in centres open until 19:00 GMT to help those without power. Facilities offered range from showers, food, hot drinks, and work-from-home hubs. NIE Networks reps are available for support. To report faults or emergencies you should contact: Northern Ireland Housing Executive: 03448 920 901 Openreach Damages to Network: 08000 23 20 23 (Individual faults must be logged with Communications Providers) Gas networks: 0800 002001 NI Water: 03457 44 00 88 or visit external Flooding Incident Line: 0300 2000 100 NIE Networks: 03457 643 643 or visit Hurricane-force winds leave 214,000 without power in NI Effort to restore power is 'extremely challenging' Way to go yet in Storm Éowyn clean-up - NI secretary Where can I get help during the power cuts?
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Six days without power has been absolutely awful
A County Antrim mother-of-five, who remains without power for a sixth day following Storm Éowyn, has said it has been "absolutely awful". Nicola Graham, from Ballymena, and her children aged between eight months and 12-years-old have been "surviving with headlamps and candles" since a tree fell on their power supply line on Friday. Homes have been damaged and about 25,000 properties in Northern Ireland remain without power for a sixth day after high winds battered the UK and Ireland last week. Specialist engineers have arrived from across the UK to help restore power, but Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) has warned it could be Monday, 3 February, before all properties are reconnected. Nicola Graham told BBC's Good Morning Ulster she has had an "absolutely awful" six days without power since Storm Éowyn on Friday. She said she has to boil a saucepan of water over her wood burning stove to feed her eight-month-old her bottle. The rest of the family are relying on take-away meals that cost £40 a night and "using the washing machine at shops", she said. "We are surviving with head lamps and candles", she added, having to recharge lamps and phones at school, work and in the car. "From 17:30 to bedtime, it's awful. We are all sitting in one room trying to keep heat and trying to entertain children. "You can't draw in the dark and play with your toys in the dark." Nicola said that because she is on the "priority list" due to her child having additional needs, NIE send her an hourly message saying the repair team is "on their way" and power will be restored by Saturday, 1 February. "I am supposed to have a check in phone call from NIE everyday and I didn't have one yesterday to see how we were coping," she added. "They offered me a community centre in Roe Valley near Limavady, that's it. "It's going to be really tough. Our saving grace is that we're out at work." She said she would like "a bit of hope that they are doing something and we are not left in limbo". "The best outcome is that I would see an NIE van beyond my lane and having my wires up to connect the power supply back to my home," she added. On Tuesday, Communities Minister Gordon Lyons pledged £1m to support communities and individuals affected by Storm Éowyn. "Storm Eowyn has caused devastation, and my primary concern is the safety and well-being of all those affected, particularly children, the elderly and people with vulnerabilities," Mr Lyons said. Lyons said Stormont departments would do everything possible to help support those who have found themselves homeless and for those needing assistance. Earlier in the week, the first minister and deputy first ministers called on NIE to "step up" and provide "goodwill payment" support to those still without power. Asked about compensation payments for people left without power for a prolonged period, Ronan McKeown from NIE said conversations would continue on Tuesday between NIE and Stormont ministers, the Economy Department and Utility Regulator. Nicola Graham told Good Morning Ulster that she thinks NIE should be looking at goodwill payments now. "Every bit of food in the fridge is ruined," she said, "and when the electric comes back on we will have to replace it." Ruadhrai O'Kane is part of the incident team for NIE Networks. He told Good Morning Ulster that Monday, 3 February, is the most "realistic" date that worst affected customers will have power restored to their properties. "We are trying to be as realistic as we can to try and give people time to make any arrangements they can," said Mr O'Kane. "We are doing all that we can to restore power to people as quickly as we can. We have meter readers going out to do checks with vulnerable customers and community assistant centres." He said that NIE has been getting support from other companies across Great Britain, while engineers have even arrived from Finland. "We probably have 1400 people working tirelessly and flat out to restore electricity supply as quickly as we can... it's our primary focus at the minute." On the question of goodwill payments, he said, NIE are "engaging with multiple agencies to try and provide the support that we can". In the Republic of Ireland, more than 142,000 properties remain without supply, according to ESB Networks - down from a peak of about 768,000 on Friday morning. The storm has also affected water supplies in some parts of Northern Ireland. NI Water say that 100 properties are still without water. He said his organisation had hoped to get generators to a further 17 properties on Tuesday and that 360 vulnerable customers had water delivered to them. The aftermath of the storm has also affected schools, with some schools in Northern Ireland remaining closed on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the National Trust has said the storm "wreaked havoc" on its estates and gardens in Northern Ireland. It estimates that 10,000 trees in Mount Stewart in County Down were "flattened" by hurricane force winds Winds of up to 90mph left Rowallane Garden in Saintfield "almost unrecognisable" with irreplaceable specimen trees permanently lost, some over 250 years old, as well as rare and exotic species and rhododendrons planted by the estate's former owner, Hugh Armytage Moor, in the 1870s. Some of the trust's properties remain closed as the damage is assessed and clean-up works get under way. NIE has said there are 11 Community Assistance Centres and more than 60 drop-in centres open until 19:00 GMT to help those without power. Facilities offered range from showers, food, hot drinks, and work-from-home hubs. NIE Networks reps are available for support. To report faults or emergencies you should contact: Northern Ireland Housing Executive: 03448 920 901 Openreach Damages to Network: 08000 23 20 23 (Individual faults must be logged with Communications Providers) Gas networks: 0800 002001 NI Water: 03457 44 00 88 or visit external Flooding Incident Line: 0300 2000 100 NIE Networks: 03457 643 643 or visit Hurricane-force winds leave 214,000 without power in NI Effort to restore power is 'extremely challenging' Way to go yet in Storm Éowyn clean-up - NI secretary Where can I get help during the power cuts?
BBC News
29-01-2025
- Climate
- BBC News
Storm Éowyn: Mother has "absolutely awful" six days without power
A County Antrim mother-of-five, who remains without power for a sixth day following Storm Éowyn, has said it has been "absolutely awful". Nicola Graham, from Ballymena, and her children aged between eight months and 12-years-old have been "surviving with headlamps and candles" since a tree fell on their power supply line on Friday. Homes have been damaged and about 25,000 properties in Northern Ireland remain without power for a sixth day after high winds battered the UK and Ireland last engineers have arrived from across the UK to help restore power, but Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) has warned it could be Monday, 3 February, before all properties are reconnected. Nicola Graham told BBC's Good Morning Ulster she has had an "absolutely awful" six days without power since Storm Éowyn on Friday. She said she has to boil a saucepan of water over her wood burning stove to feed her eight-month-old her bottle. The rest of the family are relying on take-away meals that cost £40 a night and "using the washing machine at shops", she said. "We are surviving with head lamps and candles", she added, having to recharge lamps and phones at school, work and in the car. "From 17:30 to bedtime, it's awful. We are all sitting in one room trying to keep heat and trying to entertain children."You can't draw in the dark and play with your toys in the dark."Nicola said that because she is on the "priority list" due to her child having additional needs, NIE send her an hourly message saying the repair team is "on their way" and power will be restored by Saturday, 1 February. "I am supposed to have a check in phone call from NIE everyday and I didn't have one yesterday to see how we were coping," she added. "They offered me a community centre in Roe Valley near Limavady, that's it."It's going to be really tough. Our saving grace is that we're out at work."She said she would like "a bit of hope that they are doing something and we are not left in limbo". "The best outcome is that I would see an NIE van beyond my lane and having my wires up to connect the power supply back to my home," she added. 'Goodwill payment' On Tuesday, Communities Minister Gordon Lyons pledged £1m to support communities and individuals affected by Storm Éowyn."Storm Eowyn has caused devastation, and my primary concern is the safety and well-being of all those affected, particularly children, the elderly and people with vulnerabilities," Mr Lyons said Stormont departments would do everything possible to help support those who have found themselves homeless and for those needing in the week, the first minister and deputy first ministers called on NIE to "step up" and provide "goodwill payment" support to those still without about compensation payments for people left without power for a prolonged period, Ronan McKeown from NIE said conversations would continue on Tuesday between NIE and Stormont ministers, the Economy Department and Utility Graham told Good Morning Ulster that she thinks NIE should be looking at goodwill payments now. "Every bit of food in the fridge is ruined," she said, "and when the electric comes back on we will have to replace it." In the Republic of Ireland, more than 142,000 properties remain without supply, according to ESB Networks - down from a peak of about 768,000 on Friday morning. 100 properties without water The storm has also affected water supplies in some parts of Northern Water say that 100 properties are still without water. He said his organisation had hoped to get generators to a further 17 properties on Tuesday and that 360 vulnerable customers had water delivered to aftermath of the storm has also affected schools, with some schools in Northern Ireland remaining closed on Wednesday. Emergency contacts NIE has said there are 11 Community Assistance Centres and more than 60 drop-in centres open until 19:00 GMT to help those without offered range from showers, food, hot drinks, and work-from-home hubs. NIE Networks reps are available for report faults or emergencies you should contact:Northern Ireland Housing Executive: 03448 920 901Openreach Damages to Network: 08000 23 20 23 (Individual faults must be logged with Communications Providers)Gas networks: 0800 002001NI Water: 03457 44 00 88 or visit externalFlooding Incident Line: 0300 2000 100NIE Networks: 03457 643 643 or visit
