Watch: Loreto student on how Christmas joy fuelled Mica fears

A student at Loreto Secondary School in Letterkenny has told how the sight of Christmas decorations and presents heightened the uncertainty within her Mica-affected home.

Ellen Griffin was speaking at a Mica student stance demonstration at Loreto on Friday afternoon.

The event was organised by No Place Like Home, a group of transition year students who are behind the campaign for 100 per cent redress for families hit by Mica.

The group put together Friday’s demonstration to raise awareness of students who are affected by mica and to show their support.

“At Christmas, I looked around at the decorations and the gifts and I thought: Who knows when I’ll get to do this again,” Ellen told the audience.

Campaigners Paddy Diver and Michael Doherty from the Mica Action Group were in attendance as well as TDs Padraig Mac Lochlainn and Thomas Pringle.

A survey by the No Place Like Home grouping last year found that the majority of students in Loreto had been affected in some way by Mica.

Loreto students with Padraig Mac Lochlainn TD

Ellen said: “When speaking about Mica, there are frequently asked questions: What does a person do when they discover Mica? When do we receive the money to rebuild our home? Where will we go while our home is under construction?

“Everyone who is affected by Mica will understand how it feels to have to ask these questions.

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“It’s all good and well if you have somewhere to go while your home is under construction. What about the people who don’t? Where will they go? What will they do?”

Ellen spoke of the mental trauma experienced by families who are affected by Mica.

Loreto Secondary School students at the Mica demonstration

Last year, thousands of Mica-affected homeowners marched in Dublin, gathering at the Convention Centre and making their way to Leinster House to demand 100 per cent redress.

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Ellen added: “The most heartbreaking sight for me is watching my parents drive past the walls of my house in the evening with a look of horror on their faces.

“It is a feeling we have never felt before. Uncertain about our home. Uncertain about the future of our home. Uncertain about what happens next.

“As of now, my family and I don’t know where we will be in a year’s time. As of now, school is my safe place where I feel secure.”