Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House to discuss the matter. A lot of people have suffered from the recent freak weather conditions and the combination of a high tide and high winds. The west coast, especially the area I am from, Galway, and Clare, was badly affected. As the last speaker said, Dublin was affected, which is something we must remember. Unfortunately, this type of freak weather has left a trail of destruction. It is not the first time this has happened, although I hope it is the last. None the less, we should be prepared for a recurrence and install coastal protections. In January 1839, a major winter storm hit Ireland, and homes, shops and farms were destroyed, a quarter of the houses in Dublin were damaged, and 42 ships were wrecked. It was a long time ago but weather patterns that result in extreme weather are becoming more of a problem in Ireland. The event in 1839 was recorded in history as Oíche na Gaoithe. When the State pension was introduced, in cases where births were not recorded, people were asked whether they could remember the big storm known as Oíche na Gaoithe and their acknowledgement was used as validation of their claim. I am sure there are many people in Galway, Clare and some parts of Dublin who will remember the recent storm because their lives have been changed.