Pyrite homeowners 'emotional turmoil' among issues highlighted at well-attended meeting

A large crowd, numbering several hundred, gathered at the Great National Hotel in Ballina for a public meeting regarding ongoing issues around pyrite.

Since 2013, homeowners in Mayo have been campaigning to deliver a fit for purpose scheme with 100% redress to enable homeowners to rebuild their homes.

However, last night’s meeting heard of several issues that homeowners have faced and continue to face in their attempts to rebuild their homes which have to be rebuilt as a result of pyrite and issues with the current Defective Concrete Blocks Scheme. A number of TDs, MEPs and local councillors were in attendance.

Meeting organizer Martina Hegarty of the North Mayo Pyrite Group, who organized the meeting, said the scheme is not fit for purpose.

“We now have access to a grant scheme that only partially delivers for everybody. 400 families have applied so far but we expect 1,000 more individuals and families to be impacted by this,” she said.

Among the issues faced include the lack of available administrative resources in Mayo County Council to deal with scheme applications, crumbling boundary walls in estates that are not covered by the scheme, engineer fees, making ancillary grant allocations available upfront, removing financial penalties for applicants, the demolition of semi-detached homes, the damage threshold limit and the lack of an appeals board and the inconsistency of the Housing Agency.

Homeowners also felt there was a failure to deliver when it came to testing foundations, failure in relation to the availability of SEAI grants, a lack of alternative temporary or rental accommodation and failure to make retrospective payments to those who remediated their homes prior to the availability of any scheme.

There was also a call for a Public Inquiry into the entire issue and for those responsible for this to be brought to justice.

“None of us are here because of anything that we did yet we’re the only people paying the price. Those responsible need to be made accountable,” said Ms Hegarty.

Ms Hegarty said the group wanted to put a strong emphasis on the impact this situation is having on the mental health of those affected.

“It is not just rebuilding people’s houses and the pain the pocket. Each person in emotional turmoil with the anxiety of living knowing your house is coming down is not discussed often enough,” she said.

Sinn Féin TD Rose Conway-Walsh said all of these issues can be fixed quickly if the will is there to do from Government parties.

Fianna Fail TD Dara Calleary said the current scheme is far from perfect but they have a framework in which it can be made to work.

Fine Gael MEP Maria Walsh said she was a firm believer in 100% redress and stressed that mental health supports should be put in place for all affected by this.

Independent MEP Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan said he is hopeful that the issue being raised with the EU’s Petition’s Committee can make a difference for affected homeowners. He added that pressure needs to be kept on for this issue to be resolved once and for all.

The meeting also heard from homeowners regarding the impact this has had on their financial situation, their mental health and their family stability.