Many college and city’s facilities were disrupted during the Christmas break as the coldest weather since 1982 created chaotic scenes nationwide.
The front gates of college had to be closed due to the hazardous conditions and many services were disrupted in the city centre.
Bus routes into and out of the greater Dublin area experienced delays while some Dublin buses finished early due to health and safety. The nightlink services which many people were depending on to get them home from their festive celebrations were cancelled.
The city’s local authorities were in a state of panic as supplies of grit began to diminish leaving many roads treacherous to drivers, cyclists and pedestrians alike. The city resorted to using 60% sand in place of the usual salt as supplies dwindled to a few tonnes. The AA Rescue was called out for emergencies over 700 times as commuters combated the frozen roads.
Airport services were also affected as Aer Lingus released a statement stating that thirty-one flights had been cancelled and most flights were experiencing delays of at least an hour. International students were left grounded in the airport as authorities struggled to clear the ice from the runways both here and in their destinations.
The disruptions in transport had perhaps the direst consequences for students on placement in hospitals during the cold snap. One student described how she had to walk three hours from Chapelizoid to Rathmines because her bus was cancelled. She stated; “It was like a mass exodus from the city, everybody was trudging through the snow, it was like a scene from a disaster movie”.
The annual Scholarship examinations were also affected by the icy weather as exams scheduled for Monday, January 11th were postponed. One Schols candidate commented that, “it was very short notice and it wasn’t very organized”.
Other colleges were badly affected by the freezing conditions as NUI Maynooth also rescheduled exams and UCD had to shut both its Belfield and Blackrock campuses to vehicles.
Many sporting events were also cancelled with horse racing, Magners league fixtures and GAA provincial cups all postponed due to frozen pitches or unnecessary risk to spectators.
Of course much of the city’s more vulnerable inhabitants suffered due to the freezing weather. Many elderly people were left isolated in their homes. Meanwhile Focus Ireland had to extend the opening hours for access to its services as many homeless felt the effects of the bitter cold.
Accident and Emergency units in hospitals were also under pressure, as they saw a 33% increase in admissions from the same period last year as people were injured in falls and suffered illnesses due to the cold weather. The fire service also experienced an increase in call outs as more people lit fires in their homes in an effort to fight off the cold which led to an increase to chimney fires. People have been reminded to get their chimneys swept before use and to also get chimney flue supplies if it’s found that a new flue is needed after not being used for so long. This will hopefully reduce the number of fire-related call outs. The defence forces were also called in to aid in the clearing of pavements.
Perhaps the happiest people during the poor conditions were schoolchildren. Minister for Education, Batt O’Keeffe’s imposed a blanket ban on primary and secondary schools opening until Thursday,14th January. However, many parents and employers were angered by Minister O’Keefe’s decision when it became clear that many schools could have re-opened much sooner as the forecasted heavy snowfall for last week didn’t materialize. This left many people making last minute childcare arrangements as they returned to work.
Noel Dempsey, Minister for Transport also courted controversy during the cold spell. He spent the worst parts of the cold spell in Malta. As the public called for a statement from him he was conspicuous in his absence leaving many to question his priorities.
In the aftermath of the cold snap, water supplies have been running low as functioning treatment plants work at maximum capacity to supply water to many locations in the city. Meanwhile, many mains have been broken by the frost and subsequent thaw leaving some homes without water and thus central heating. Dublin City Council is urging people to conserve water as it attempts to repair burst mains and restore normal water levels. Many localities will be supplied with reduced pressure during off-peak times in an effort to prevent waste of current water supplies.
The high level of expenditure required to maintain the roads during the so called “Big Chill” will mean cutting down on expenditure later in the year. South Dublin county councils spending alone comes to €1.2 million which is three times the €400,000 figure that was budgeted for. With no extra money being made available to the councils, it can be assumed that this year’s extraordinarily cold winter will still be felt by the council’s financiers until the end of the year.
