'Horrendous' state of Mayo's council-owned pyrite homes

Residents in pyrite-stricken local authority estates in Erris have pleaded with the Government and Mayo County Council to have social housing finally included in the national response to defective blocks.

Homes in Cois Abhainn in Carrowteige and Ferry Close in Pullathomas were built with defective concrete blocks and are crumbling before the eyes of their remaining residents with cracks running from the ground up to the gables. However, unlike private homes, social houses such as these are not included in the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme.

A number of residents spoke to the Western People about living in a Mayo County Council property, where the rooms are bitterly cold, dampness and mould lines the walls and where rain slips through the cracks, some of which are big enough to fit an arm into, let alone a finger.  They have watched a number of houses around them empty out and start to become derelict.

The residents wished to remain anonymous but expressed a desire to have the reality of their situation highlighted.

One resident described their living conditions through the winter as “horrendous”. 

“My main worry, economically, is that you are burning through a whole bag of coal to heat the house every two days. I can keep my fire going until 9pm but all the heat has gone overnight and by the time I get up in the morning, it is absolutely freezing.

“These are awful conditions to have to live in. My family and I have all been to the doctor with chest infections purely because half the night you’re freezing.” 

Another resident described the terrible feeling of a draft coming through the cracks in their walls.

“The house is so cold no matter what heat is on and it was a very cold winter. When the heat you have just goes, it is very stressful,” they said.

The resident wanted to renovate their home but sees little sense in doing so when year after year, the cracks become more obvious.

“It is hard to upkeep a house when it is crumbling. Putting money into something when we don’t know what the plan is, there is no point. We recently painted the house but we can see the cracks coming through the paint again.” 

There are also concerns from some homeowners and pyrite campaigners that a part fix carried out by the council at a house in Cois Abhainn in 2021 has proved “a costly experiment”. Outer leaf blocks were replaced as part of these works but it would appear that cracks are now returning at this property.

The residents have a love for these houses and there is a clear and obvious desperation to stay in the place they have come to call home.

“This is a beautiful place to live, it was such a lovely village but now the whole village is dying. It is so depressing looking out at derelict houses. It was lovely when the kids were growing up, playing on the green, but now you look out and you’re waiting for the houses to fall down,” remarked one resident.

Residents in the two impacted estates have called on Mayo County Council to give them some indication of what their future will be in their homes.

“We feel as though the council is not giving us any indication what is happening with these houses. I’d like if they could help us out and tell us what’s been happening and what is going to happen,” said one resident.

“If I could speak directly to them, I’d want to tell them they should have knocked the houses and rebuilt the estate,” said another.

“If the powers-that-be have the money to rebuild houses affected by pyrite, why can’t it be also given to Mayo County Council to rebuild these houses? Nobody living in these houses wanted this to happen, it was purely out of our hands.

“They just wanted a nice home to be happy and retire in but now we’re left in a situation where you don’t know where you will be in six months time, whether we’ll be here or if something will happen to move these houses along. We need to know whether we’ll have to spend another winter in the cold,” they added.

The Mayo Pyrite Action Group have said they are continuing to fight on behalf of those living in social housing damaged by pyrite who have been left waiting far too long for decisive Government action.

“The continued delays in full remediation of these homes and clear accountability have caused much uncertainty for affected households who deserve to live in safe and secure homes,” said Margaret Walsh, a member of the group.

“We are told a scheme is coming for the rebuilding of these homes but there is no clear indication yet of when that will be or legislation in place for that to happen. We would ask that if demolitions and rebuilds ever commence in the future this is done in collaboration with the residents who remain in these estates, with minimal disruption to their lives. 

“The issue of financial loss to those who have purchased defective homes from the council also needs to be addressed,” added Ms Walsh.