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Red Cross says modular housing sites for Ukrainians should not be in isolated locations

The government expects modular homes for hundreds of Ukrainians will be constructed within a 16-week period.

THE HEAD OF the Irish Red Cross has said the use of modular housing for Ukrainian refugees is a good solution to the current accommodation shortage but the government should ensure these sites are close to local communities and supports. 

Ministers at the Cabinet subcommittee on Ukraine this week discussed plans to build hundreds of modular homes which will be purchased from Irish suppliers. 

The government expects the homes will be constructed within a 16 week period.

Government sources described the homes as being “very good quality”, designed to last for around 60 years. 

Eight sites have been identified and are currently being assessed by the Office of Public Works (OPW).

Speaking to The Journal, Liam O’Dwyer, secretary general of the Irish Red Cross,  said he does not know the locations of all of these sites but was aware that one was “on the grounds of a stately building close to the town” while another is “on the outskirts of a town”.

He said it would be “ideal” if these sites were close to local amenities and community supports to help those arriving from Ukraine to settle in and ensure they are not isolated. O’Dwyer said this would also better facilitate access to employment and to education for families with children.

“Mosney, as a direct provision centre, has been spoken about with huge negativity over the years, but a lot of work went into it and it became a place that people enjoyed living there,” he said.

“It stopped them from becoming institutionalised, they were able to do things like cook their own food, make their way to work and back and so on. If the right investment is put in and if this is done well it can work. No one is saying this is an ideal situation because it’s not, this is an emergency situation and we went to ensure people are as comfortable as possible.”

The government is aiming to have 6,000 people in total in accommodation pledged by members of the public by the end of the summer. Other options for housing include residential institutions such as former convents. 

O’Dwyer said religious ordered had been generous in offering up properties for use and he said the involvement of the local community at one such property in Tipperary had helped Ukrainian arrivals find work and ensured their children settled well into school. 

There are also plans to house 3,000 people in refurbished local authority buildings.

Transport Minister Eamon Ryan told reporters earlier this week that thousand of student beds will no longer be available for refugees as students return to college after the summer. The various solutions discussed this week will have to be in place by then.

O’Dwyer said that while people are continuing to arrive to Ireland from Ukraine, volunteers at ports and airports have reported that numbers are down significantly.

Some are also making the decision to return to Ukraine to be with their families if they feel that there is a “lull in the fighting in certain parts of the country”, he said. 

He said that while it is hard to predict how long the conflict in Ukraine will continue, it is likely that many who sought refuge here will go back home. 

“Obviously if the modular homes could be used to address the wider housing issue afterwards – when people have left – that would be great,” he said.

“Interestingly this has brought a bit of creativity into how we think about housing and accommodating people in need in Ireland, that creativity hasn’t been there before so I think lessons need to be learned.”

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    Mute Denis McClean
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    Mar 16th 2018, 1:10 PM

    Multiple carts before horses and fields with open gates come to mind.

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    Mute Paul O Faolain
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    Mar 16th 2018, 1:47 PM

    Was it pilot error or something else,does anyone know the answer

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    Mute Nauris Serna
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    Mar 16th 2018, 2:11 PM

    @Paul O Faolain: Ad with most accidents, it’s a sequence of events that led to it. Also, worth noting, that the purpose of the investigation is to prevent a repeat, rather than put a blame or liability on somebody.

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    Mute Crocodylus Pontifex
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    Mar 16th 2018, 2:53 PM

    @Paul O Faolain: The investigation is ongoing. There is a requirement to publish a report 1 year after the event if the case is still open which is what today’s update is about. A lot of things had to line up for this tragedy to happen so there will be no clear and simple answer.

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    Mute Hugh Legat
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    Mar 16th 2018, 3:39 PM

    Investigation ongoing. I would like to know is it correct the pilot repeatedly ignored radar alarms of an “imminent collision” take evasive action! It doesn’t matter it wasn’t on her chart.

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    Mute Ohhh_reeally
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    Mar 16th 2018, 4:01 PM

    @Hugh Legat: good man Hugh, “you’d like to know”. Do you mind me asking why you’d like to know? What use will the information be to you once you have it?

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    Mute pat winters
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    Mar 16th 2018, 5:10 PM

    @Hugh Legat: A lot of reading but avoiding the proverbial elephant (lighthouse) in the room. A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mark dangerous coastlines, hazardous shoals, reefs, and safe entries to harbors; they also assist in aerial navigation.

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    Mute EUGENE 70 percent
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    Mar 16th 2018, 10:35 PM

    @Hugh Legat: is it the ground proximity warning system that gives the warning you refer to.

    Because an earlier finding was that Blackrock was not on whatever mapping the ground proximity warning uses.

    I see on RTE that the investigation is continuing and that warning systems are one of the things that will continue to be looked at.

    Best wait for the FINAL report before rushing to assume the pilot ignored warmings.

    Quite striking in my eyes to see a reccomendation for review of SYSTEMS and how the SAR operations operate “if it was as simple as a pilot ignoring a warning”.

    Can’t help but suspect that theres a POSSIBILITY that investigators see wider system flaws as at the very least a POTENTIAL contributory factor in the crash.

    They aren’t making recommendations for fun. They are likely making them because the investigation is uncovering things pointing them to a NEED for one.

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    Mute Quentin Moriarty
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    Mar 17th 2018, 9:09 AM

    @Ohhh_reeally: landing gear down 9 miles out
    Legat has a point

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    Mute Quentin Moriarty
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    Mar 16th 2018, 5:32 PM

    Altitude approach protocols a priority

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    Mute Martin Dale
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    Mar 16th 2018, 3:37 PM

    Proper order

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    Mute Neuville-Kepler62F
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    Mar 17th 2018, 6:24 PM

    “Professional” Pilot error is never a root cause of air accidents when viewed from an engineering perspective. It is a systems or process error. This is the second helicopter crash after Tramore. The root cause of both must be identified.

    Even at speed a good on board radar system will give ample advanced warning of impending collision and should intervene in aircraft flight to avoid it.

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