Mac Con Midhe Calls For Severe Winter Preparation

Mac Con Midhe calls for Pre-emptive Measures in time for Arctic Winter Downpatrick Sinn Fein Councillor Éamonn Mac Con Midhe has written to the Roads Service requesting that sufficient measures are taken to ensure that adequate salt supplies have been drafted into the Southern Division to deal with the harsh winter conditions that are slowly but surely approaching us. After last year’s heavy fall of snow and days of icy roads and pavements, virtually bringing the country to a standstill, Cllr Mac Con Midhe said, “We are  eager to make sure we are prepared for the worst if the Arctic conditions return again this winter.” Cllr Mac Con Midhe added, “Last year our constituency office was in inundated with calls from concerned residents and business owners from across Downpatrick and neighbouring villages asking us to address the issue of empty salt boxes and in some cases no salt boxes at all. “In an effort to address these issues satisfactorily, I would urge the Southern Division to call an audit on the number of bins and the positioning of these bins now before the conditions get worse. Perhaps they could also use the same initiative adopted by other divisions last year by ensuring that residential areas and community groups’ receive adequate salt supplies to keep roads and footpaths clear in a bid to allow emergency vehicles and commuting traffic access to travel. Cllr Mac Con Midhe said, “I think the Southern Division should also seriously examine how it engages with the community, and I think a campaign of up-to-date information through a variety of social networking sites could be a wonderful resource for concerned people in our community. With information keeping residents updated with the maintenance and location of salt bins, I believe there should be no reason why people are left out in the cold again this winter.”]]>