A year on from Storm Éowyn the recovery is still ongoing
Storm Éowyn knocked down trees and caused huge damage in Roscommon. Pic: Liam Reynolds
Parts of the country are struggling to recover from the devastation caused by Storm Éowyn, and the slow response risks repeating the chaos when the next major weather event arrives, a Fine Gael Senator has said.
Senator Gareth Scahill said that despite the unprecedented scale of the storm’s impact, not only felt on the country’s electricity network but also across Ireland’s forests, Ireland remains exposed and underprepared.
Coillte confirmed this week, a year on from the storm, that the clean-up of more than 26,000 hectares of damaged forest will now continue into the middle of 2027 with an estimated 50 million trees blown over or damaged and recovery costs are expected to exceed €60 million.
“Storm Éowyn left more than 768,000 electricity customers without power, many for days on end. That level of disruption was unacceptable then, and would be even more unacceptable now,” he said.
He said the prolonged forestry recovery, which is still only about 20% complete, shows how deeply the storm exposed weaknesses in national infrastructure and emergency planning.
“If a storm of similar strength hit tomorrow, we all know the outcome would be the same. That is a failure of planning and shouldn’t be an inevitable consequence.” Senator Scahill criticised the lack of progress on the Electricity (Supply) (Amendment) Bill 2025, legislation he has repeatedly demanded should be fast-tracked. The bill would give ESB Networks the power to manage vegetation near power lines, set up statutory forestry corridors and give a framework for landowner compensation.
“The heads of the bill were approved last summer. However, since then nothing has changed and there doesn’t seem to be any urgency. My constituents are tired of vague assurances. They want to know how long they will be without power when the next storm hits.”
He also pointed to recent research published by Met Éireann which showed man-made climate change increases the likelihood of storms like Éowyn in the future.
“The science is unambiguous. These storms are becoming more frequent and more destructive. Ignoring that reality is reckless. We need stronger infrastructure, stronger legislation and stronger political will.”
He called on the Government to take immediate action to strengthen Ireland’s energy and environmental resilience, warning that the prolonged recovery effort by Coillte should serve as a clear reminder of the consequences of inaction.
