With much of North Cork still buried under a blanket of snow, standout community members have been stepping up to keep things running smoothly.
Among these is farmer Mike O’Sullivan from Duhallow, who came to the aid of a milk lorry that had become stranded in the heavy snowfall.
The truck was sent out to collect milk from a neighbour of Mike’s but became stuck in the snow right outside the entrance. Mike was passing by in his tractor and the driver flagged him down asking for help.
“So I know the lorry driver, and he waved me down, and he said, ‘Any chance?’ And I went, yeah, no bother, drive on,” Mike told Cork’s 96FM Opinion Line with PJ Coogan.
Within a few minutes, the lorry was freed from the snow and pulled into the farmyard, ready to collect milk for the creamery. Once the truck was on its way, Mike bid farewell to his neighbour and went to put his tractor to good use elsewhere.
The vehicle has been instrumental throughout the recent Status Orange warnings, and together with a group of friends, Mike has been doing everything from jumpstarting vehicles to clearing roads not covered by county council gritting crews.
In recent days, Mike has cleared a number of people’s driveways of snow, pulled several cars that had become stuck in the snow and dropped in coal to a few elderly people in his community. The Duhallow man also jumpstarted a car belonging to a doctor to help ensure he got in to see his patients.
While out helping the community, Mike faced his own hardships as a result of the heavy snowfall. The farmer’s animal shed collapsed after a foot and a half of snow built up on the roof.
Thankfully, no animals were killed during the collapse, but the repairs are likely to be a time-consuming and expensive endeavour.
Mike is still out and about today despite the collapse and is currently working with a group of friends to clear snow from estates around Kanturk.
The Duhallow man and his group of friends are prime examples of the kindness we’ve seen from communities across North Cork over the last week, and they deserve recognition for their efforts.