Power outages in Kinsale and Carrigaline and access 'proving more difficult than normal' – ESB

THE ESB says that a number of homes in West Cork are without power, particularly in areas around Béal na Bláth, Kinsale and Carrigaline.

56 customers in the Béal na Bláth area are currently without power and an estimated restoration time given by the ESB is 6.15pm this evening.. In Kinsale 77 customers are without power and it is expected to be back by 4pm today. 52 customers by the Old Head of Kinsale are also without power and it is expected to be due back at 4pm also.

Teams are working on restoring power to as many as possible by tonight, though some customers may have to wait longer. Due to ice and snow on the roads, access is the greatest impediment to restoring supply.

Customers can check the updated position for their area on the map on powercheck.ie and if you put in your MPRN number, you can see if your specific house is affected.

During the night and this morning, Storm Emma caused some damage to the electricity network, with a peak of 101,000 homes, farms and businesses without power nationally, at 1:30am last night.  

As of 12:20pm, there are 350 faults affecting 26,000 homes and business who are without electricity, predominantly in the east of the country and also around Cork.   In the normal course of events, this would be a very manageable number of faults for ESB Networks to deal with, but access issues due to snow and ice are hugely hampering efforts to restore electricity supplies.  

‘We understand how difficult it is to not have electricity in these conditions and so our staff are focussed on trying to restore supply to as many people as possible as quickly as possible.  There are deep snow drifts in various parts of the country and so it is taking our crews a very long time to travel to each fault. It is also more difficult than normal to then carry out a repair,’ said a statement.  

‘We will continue to work with the emergency services and Local Authorities to ensure the safety of the pubic and to minimise disruption and are seeking assistance from other state agencies to help us with access.  However, it is unlikely that we will be able to restore supply to all customers today as a result of the conditions. Updates and more specific restoration times will issue later today.’  

The main areas affected, at the moment, are parts of Carrigaline, Trabolgan, Aghada and Kinsale in Cork and several areas in the east.   For those customers currently impacted by faults, information on power outages and restoration times are available on: •    www.esbpowercheck.ie or on the PowerCheck App for iPhone and Android devices. •    If your fault is not showing on Powercheck please report it at https://www.esbnetworks.ie/power-outages-updates/report-a-power-outage . Customers should have their MPRN available in order to log the fault and to access information on restoration times specific to their location •  

If you have no internet access please call 1850 372 999. Customers should have their MPRN available to access recorded information specific to their location. •    You can also check @ESBNetworks on Twitter for updates.  

‘We would also ask for help from the public in reporting all emergencies such as fallen wires to 1850 372 999,’ the ESB added.   Precautions that you may consider taking to be prepared for an electricity outage are to : •    Have plenty of food and water available •    Have torches with spare batteries available •    Make sure your phone is charged and, if possible, have a phone charger at hand for your car •    Please check that elderly or vulnerable relatives and neighbours are prepared to be without electricity •    If you have electric gates, please check you know how to work them manually •    Have an alternative fuel supply available if possible to provide heating for your home.  

If you lose power: •    Never approach broken lines or damaged poles, and keep children and animals away – report damage to ESB Networks at 1850 372 999 and listen to recorded messages carefully •    Turn off electric cookers, ovens, irons, etc. if electricity supply is lost •    Leave a light switched on so you know when power has been restored •    Take extra care if using candles, oil lamps or other naked flames •    Test smoke alarms with fresh batteries •    Ensure adequate ventilation if using gas heaters.