As temperatures increase sheep farmers have been checking on their flocks particularly those on the Galtees. A video has been shared online by a local woman, Anne Drake, showing members of the Cunningham Family – Tom, John, Billy and William and their neighbours out on the Galtees over the last few days digging out their sheep.
The Williams’ raise Blackfaced mountain sheep on the Galtees with several thousand sheep in their herd. The farmer’s sheep dogs alerted them to the presence of sheep under the snow.
Rosie Cunningham, Tom’s wife says the wind caused the snow to fill hollows and boreens – areas where the sheep may have gathered for shelter. Many sheep have survived as an air pocket develops around them in what has been the worst snowfall in decades. The farmers are expecting that some sheep will not have survived and that a final count will not be possible until next week. The video of the rescues can be seen on Facebook.
Farmers have faced difficulties in accessing outlying farm yards and water outages caused by the weather with the roofs on some farm buildings collapsing due to heavy snow.
The wider community has also received tremendous vital help from farmers providing tractors to travel over impassable roads and farmers also using their equipment to clear snow.
