ESB crews travel to UK to help restore power

Minister, Noel Dempsey, TD, Minister for Communications Marine and Natural Resources has praised the work of ESB Networks staff that travelled to the UK to help restore power in the wake of a record breaking storm.

On Sunday 21st of January, sixteen ESB Network crews from various parts of the country set off to help restore power to thousands of customers who lost electricity after a record breaking storm swept across Europe on Thursday, January 18th. The crews were accompanied by a manager and three supervisors; they travelled with 21 fully equipped vehicles.

The crews, which had travelled from as far away as Tralee and Athlone, sailed on the first ferry from Dublin Port and were working by close of business on Sunday. The crews worked under the direction of Manweb, the network utility in the Liverpool and Manchester area. Several thousand customers in the area were still without power some three days after the storm.

Minster Dempsey said the work being done in the UK was a clear indicator of good business cooperation. "I am pleased that sixteen highly skilled and fully equipped ESB crews are travelling to England to help the electricity restoration there. The work of restoring power to homes is an important task whether in Meath or Manchester and the cooperation that exists between the various utilities is a tangible example of the positive working relationship they have."

ESB Network crews also travelled to Northern Ireland as recently as last December to help power restoration there following a storm in early December.