RTE’S Prime Time programme has tonight claimed that 23 families have begun legal action against the concrete block suppliers to homes which are now crumbling.
However Cassidy Brothers, which produced blocks, told the programme tonight that it was ‘vigorously’ defending the litigation.
Tonight’s programme was the first time the problem with Mica – a silicate mineral – has been given national prominence.
As reported on Donegal Daily over the past two years, hundreds of homes around Donegal are literally crumbling – as one resident put it – “like Weetabix”.
Cassidy Brothers refused to take part in the Prime Time programme, citing the ongoing legal action.
The programme also obtained internal Donegal County Council emails which showed that homes owned by the council were also affected by Mica.
Reports from engineers recommend that some houses should be demolished.
One report said the value of the house had been written off, saying it was now worth just the land on which it was built, minus the cost of clearing the site.
Tonight Senator Padraig Mac Lochlainn paid tribute to the Mica Action Group and Rita O’ Reilly on tonight’s “powerful: RTE Primetime report.
“We need a Mica Redress Scheme for the families affected,” said Mac Lochlainn.
“This is a profound failure of State regulation and these Donegal families cannot be abandoned by the same State that failed them.”
Families in Inishowen and Letterkenny and the surrounding areas have been affected.
After watching the programme, Bernadette Carlin said: “We are fighting about this for 13 years and still no change here in Fairgreen Hill Letterkenny.
“The houses are subsiding. You can put your hand in through the cracks. We have been trying to get answers from the Donegal County Council. I am glad that RTE Primetime has aired this. They are cold and damp in the winter.”
The issue is being investigated by a government appointed specialist group.
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