Editorial: For fear of frost

CAUGHT between Christmas and the New Year, these few days feel peculiar. Some public services and businesses are open, others remain closed. Traffic is light, people few on the streets. It is a kind of no-man's-land, a twilight zone.[private] The snow meant a pleasantly white Christmas backdrop for those who had not lost their essential water supplies. But it had long lost its novelty value, and the thaw that followed on St Stephen's Day brought mixed blessings. The roads may have been safer, but many householders had to face burst water pipes and damage to ceilings and floors. It is a truism to state that our civilisation is based on a flimsy foundation. Here in Ireland we are cossetted by a normally temperate climate, and we expect natural cataclysmic events to occur far from our shores â€â€ tsunamis in the Indian Ocean, earthquakes in Turkey or Haiti. But a far less dramatic event, a few weeks of cold air blowing from the Arctic, was enough to close airports and restrict road traffic, as well as deprive thousands of families of the water they take for granted. Here in this part of Co Galway we can thank our Council engineers for the fact that our main water distribution system remained intact. The Tuam regional supply scheme is state of the art â€â€ the supply problem was mainly in the domestic pipes that feed individual homes, and this is something that building regulations have a lot to do with. A few inches shallower or deeper in the trench made all the difference in determining which house would have water and which would not. As we wait the turn of the year, and give thanks every time the weather forecasters predict rain and mild temperatures, we should consider how to equip ourselves to deal with another cold spell. There is no guarantee that the North Wind will not send more icy blasts our way: we should be better prepared next time.[/private]