To own an electric vehicle in rural east Galway is to be thought of as eccentric, if not downright strange.
You get suspicious glances over hedgerows, as farmers in Massey Ferguson tractors wonder at the starship hum. You get sideways looks over pints of Guinness, with repeated jokes about Duracell batteries and not letting the car get caught out in the rain.
But to own an electric vehicle in rural east Galway in the middle of a once-in-a-generation storm is a different prospect altogether.
When the electricity goes in these parts, there is simply no telling when it might return. No electricity means no power, but it usually also means no water as most homes in these areas are supplied by private wells.
The only consolation is the possibility of braving the roads to join the queue at the nearest generator-powered Supermacs, the place where rural Ireland really came together over the past week.
But if, like me, you happen to be one of those peculiar EV-owning weirdos, even this may be denied to you.
When Storm Éowyn roared across Ireland last Friday night, it took with it east Galway’s entire public-charging network.
[ Is there any issue with driving an electric car through a flood?Opens in new window ]
From my perch on the Slieve Aughty mountains, the four closest public charging points at Portumna, Loughrea, Gort and Athenry were offline for days.
EV owners need to be good at maths to ensure they can get from A to B safely. But calculating a trip to a hopefully open shop, with a diminishing battery, on uncertain roads and with no prospect of recharging, is the wrong kind of maths to be doing.
There have been many difficult calculations made over the past week and many rural EV owners will be wondering if the stress of storms and future power outages is worth it.
Thankfully, supply returned to my little corner of east Galway after 52 worrisome hours. But the prospect of being fully cut off, with no communication, power or a realistic means of getting to civilisation, was a chastening one.
I love my EV, and I even dream of one day being able to power my home using its battery during short power outages, but the past week has made me think twice.
Storm Éowyn should serve as a learning experience for politicians and public servants. Our electricity grid is not robust enough to handle the storms that are coming our way.
This is true right across the country, but it is especially true in rural areas where walking or getting public transport is not an option.
ESB Networks must do to the national grid what Uisce Éireann is attempting to do to our water systems. Long term planning and investment is required – let’s hope that we get it.
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