A former Mayor of Killarney has complained that many people living in housing estates in and near the town have been left stranded in their homes because the dangerous snow and ice has not been cleared.
Seán Counihan has queried why Kerry County Council hasn’t arranged to deliver grit to these areas to allow pathways to be treated so people can walk more safely.
He said the paths and roads in many estates are in an “absolutely treacherous” state and even if they wanted to, it wouldn’t be safe for more elderly people to travel to and from the designated grit collection points being operated by council staff.
“When people reach a certain stage in life, a fall can be life-changing,” said the former long-serving Labour Party councillor.
Mr Counihan said before the town councils were abolished under the Local Government Reform Act in 2014, council staff delivered sand and grit to local estates in times of bad weather so that residents could gain access to it without too much difficulty but that situation has now changed.
“There has been very little or no thaw in many parts of some estates and the lives of older people are being put at risk,” he said.
Mr Counihan, who lives in Ardshanavooley, said he and other residents helped to get sand some on some pathways in the estate but many areas are still highly dangerous.
“I know the council crews are doing a great job on the main roads and the paths in town and that they can’t be everywhere but this begs the question if they have sufficient manpower and should more staff be recruited?” he asked.
“There’s a big push for pedestrianisation in Killarney but what’s the sense of that in times like this if people can’t even walk on the footpaths,” he added.
Posting a snapshot of a snow and ice covered footpath in an earlier post on social media, he remarked: “God be with the days when we had our own town council to deal with this and councillors who cared”.
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