The Stormont Executive has allocated almost £20 million to repair damage caused by Storm Eowyn.
The storm in January brought high-speed gusts which left a record number of people in Northern Ireland without electricity and more than 3,000 incidents of obstructions of trees and debris on roads.
Ministers met on Thursday and agreed funding allocations of £19.4 million, with £17.4 million being provided to help departments deal with the impact of the storm.
The remaining £2 million has been allocated to the Department for the Economy for unavoidable pressure in its statutory skills programme which has arisen due to higher-than-anticipated demand.
The Department for Infrastructure, which includes the Roads Service, is receiving the most, with £8 million to deal with a “range of pressures”.
The Department of Health will receive £4 million for repairs to its estate, the Department of Education will receive £3 million for school building repairs, and the Department for Communities will receive £1.4 million for pressures including the emergency financial assistance scheme.
Meanwhile the Department of Justice will receive £1 million to meet additional policing costs in terms of assisting other emergency service partners in the repair of damage to infrastructure.
Finance Minister John O’Dowd said Storm Eowyn caused widespread disruption to individuals, businesses, communities and to public services with damage to schools, the hospital estate and critical infrastructure, including the road network and water supply.
He said: “I want to pay tribute to our frontline staff and emergency services who worked together with partner agencies in the most challenging of circumstances to keep us safe, support the most vulnerable in our communities, clear roads and restore power.
“The recovery operation will take time, with assessments still ongoing the true cost of the storm has yet to be fully quantified.
“Given the unprecedented scale of the Storm Eowyn, I was determined to ensure this additional Westminster funding was allocated quickly to departments to help them respond to its impact.”
Mr O’Dowd added: “Given the unforeseen costs and exceptional challenges facing departments as they deal with the aftermath of the storm, the limited funding available had to be prioritised for this purpose.
“I appreciate the other financial pressures faced by departments and am committed to working together with my Executive colleagues to address the challenges ahead.”
