A social media campaign by Mica homeowners has proven to be one of the most successful of the year, according to Twitter.
The #MicaRedress hashtag was the second highest trending news topic on Twitter in 2021, coming just after #covid19 and #covid19ireland.
#MicaRedress was one of many tags used by Mica homeowners in their weekly ‘Twitter storms’ to highlight their fight for 100% redress.
Back in May, many of the homeowners had never used Twitter before. But the community worked together to share tutorials with each other on how to get the most impact from their tweets.
Imagine the stress that owning a mica home brings. Financial pressure, stress on children and then add in a weather bomb
Thank god no bad reports yet and we’re hopefully through the worst of it. Some of these houses though are on the verge#MicaStorm #MicaScaleOut #MicaRedress pic.twitter.com/WNMuMWxnxQ
— Paddy Diver (@PaddyDiver4) December 8, 2021
The impacts of #MicaStorm are sometimes all I see across my beautiful Donegal landscape🏚🏚🏚🏚 and sometimes hidden in the eyes of homeowners 💔You can stop ✋ this @DarraghOBrienTD #MicaScaleOut #micaredress pic.twitter.com/QKBWfha9IJ
— Mary Teresa Mc Bride (@mtmacb) December 8, 2021
The campaign was particularly effective during Storm Barra, as families used #MicaStorm to broadcast the devastation that the storm caused on their crumbling homes.
And in the past week, the #MicaScaleOut hashtag highlights homeowners’ refusal to accept the details of the revised redress scheme.
The impacts of #MicaStorm are sometimes all I see across my beautiful Donegal landscape🏚🏚🏚🏚 and sometimes hidden in the eyes of homeowners 💔You can stop ✋ this @DarraghOBrienTD #MicaScaleOut #micaredress pic.twitter.com/QKBWfha9IJ
— Mary Teresa Mc Bride (@mtmacb) December 8, 2021
#StormBarra magnified the anxiety homeowners live with everyday. We wait & wait, our houses deteriorate & so does the mental health of every generation affected. @DarraghOBrienTD @MichealMartinTD we need an urgent response to give people daylight. #MicaScaleOut end #MicaLimbo pic.twitter.com/TqSQIpTfnk
— Mica Action Group (@micaactiongroup) December 8, 2021
The third most discussed Irish news story on Twitter this year was the tragic disappearance and passing of Belfast schoolboy Noah Donohoe (#noahsarmy) in June.
#Leavingcert2021 saw some strong opinions from Irish Twitter users this year and fifth place for the second year in a row saw #brexit continue to dominate the news agenda.
