'Welcome to Castletown Geoghegan'
Letter to the editor on Storm Éowyn
Editor,
This village in Westmeath had its electricity supply restored last Sunday. Up and down the roads, the locals rejoiced at having their power back. That was a terrible storm, and well done to the ESB.
However, not to be outdone by water flowing upwards or the Valley of the Squinting Windows – the ESB seems to have mislaid part of this Westmeath village – it has been transported to Clara – on the Powercheck app – and with it are 15 properties – totally surrounded by properties with electricity. Are those 15 properties set out in the middle of a big field, perhaps they can only be reached by heavy machinery – that has to travel down magical narrow little roads to find this forgotten outpost?
No – they are a quarter of a mile from the village, set out on the side of the road, surrounded by lights up and down the road and all around. Maybe it’s so dark there that the ESB think there is no one living there – ah sure, they are mainly older people, who cares about them. Maybe the fault lies with the large beech tree that fell, bringing down the electricity wires – last Friday – sure that would be too easy – that’s on the side of the road – they could easily reach that.
The properties that can no longer be seen in the darkness and the cold occupants (sent to Clara on the Powercheck app) wait for an update. The updates come and go – first it was Sunday [like the rest of the village] – then it was February 2 but the cold gift of giving from the ESB has moved so many times that as a wheel turns it now lingers on Friday, a full five days after the rest of Castletown. I suppose it takes longer to make repairs to a part of a Westmeath village now transported to a neighbouring county.
Well done to the Terrace – moved to Clara on the Powercheck app – we can now claim the pride and success of those Offaly All-Irelands in hurling and football.
Being in a winning county has proven costly for the occupants of the 15 properties – we look up and down the road at our neighbours – some even a few feet away and wonder how much more we have to pay the ESB to get our electricity supply back. No electricity, no heating, no mobile phones, no landlines, no hot water – the joys of being constantly cold and forgotten. Begging to charge your mobile phone in the local hotel or restaurant. Going to bed cold and sometimes just sitting in your car trying to get warm.
The people of the 15 properties are tired and sometimes they think they see a yellow ESB truck in the distance – it might stop if it comes down our road – it might stop and fix that fallen cable – ah no – it was only a dream – brought on from the terrible cold.
It was a terrible storm – well done to the ESB. Sure you cannot please everyone – they will have to wait – we cannot find a Castletown in Clara and there is no Clara in Castletown. Sure the Powercheck app is always right. Neighbours rush by – there by the grace of God go I – well I suppose they have those All-Irelands now – that will keep them warm…
Regards, Cathy Clarke, Castletown Geoghegan
PS (Friday of last week, lunchtime) The ESB were out this morning – to repair a broken wire on the side of the road – less than two hours to get the electricity back, seven days after the storm; five days after the rest of the village.