Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The last six days have seen an heroic effort in those areas affected by Storm Emma and the blizzard caused by the so-called beast from the east. That effort continues now. The impact on the east coast was extraordinary. The first official day of spring began with a number of counties blanketed in snow and ice. Communities have pulled, pushed and shovelled together, in a powerful display of the old Irish concept of meitheal, that is, working together to help our friends and our neighbours. Stories of the snow will not be forgotten for decades. I instanced one myself this morning on RTÉ, that of Mr. Declan Cunningham, an advanced paramedic with the National Ambulance Service based in Wexford General Hospital, and Corporal Steve Holloway of the Defence Forces. In the middle of one of the worst snowstorms in living memory, Declan and Steve were tasked to attend to an extremely sick child whose home was inaccessible. They trekked 2.8 km through snowdrifts to reach the boy, and then carried him 2.8 km back on foot to their Army ambulance. Every community, in my county and in many other counties, can tell stories like this. It shows the best of us in the worst of circumstances. We have been served incredibly well during the last week by a range of public services. I refer to our health services, our emergency services, our local authority workers working to the point of exhaustion and all who worked in those terrible conditions, from the ESB to Irish Water, from teachers to public servants, from Met Éireann to the Office of Emergency Planning. Our systems worked to make sure that we were warned in a timely fashion and thankfully, there were no fatalities.

However, this is the second red alert in the space of five months. The impact of climate change is far too real, and our country has to be prepared for stronger and more damaging storms and weather events. The first time a status red weather warning was issued was in advance of Storm Ophelia, during which, sadly, three individuals died. At the time, I raised this with the Taoiseach. When events like this occur, we need to know what specifically is expected of employers and employees in the event of a declaration of a status red warning. The Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union, SIPTU, has called for clear protocols to be put in place. A review was to take place after Storm Ophelia, and a report was to be prepared and submitted to the Government task force on emergency planning. Members were told this would happen in January 2018. Can the Taoiseach tell Members whether the responsible Minister, the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, has submitted that report? Moreover, will the Government now prepare clear guidance and protocols to employers and employees who are affected by a red alert warning in the future in order that we can have absolute clarity across our country?

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