Calls have been made for an additional support hub to be put in place in Clare for Ukrainian refugees.
It comes as the Justice Minister has confirmed that officials will be in place in Shannon in the coming days to help process those arriving into the country.
Close to 200 Ukrainian refugees have arrived into Clare over the past few days, as Clare FM’s Fiona Cahill reports:
Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee has confirmed that officials will be put in place at Shannon Airport to process refugees from Ukraine.
It follows calls from Clare Oireachtas members over the past number of days, who’ve expressed concern about the lengthy waits for those arriving into Shannon from the war-torn country.
It’s understood that on Wednesday night last week, a number of people had to wait several hours at the Midwest facility, before being transported to the reception centre in Dublin.
While on Thursday night, members of the Red Cross were in place to welcome those landing at Shannon, with a number of people accommodated overnight in North Clare.
Clare Fine Gael Senator Martin Conway says steps are being taken to address the rapidly-evolving situation and that details are still being ironed out.
The Ennistymon Senator says discussions are underway with a view to establishing Intro centres at Shannon, Cork and Knock airports and at Rosslare Harbour.
He’s confident that formalised state facilities will be in place in the coming days, but he believes a permanent structure is needed.
The Clare Immigrant Support Centre is calling for an additional support hub to be established at a central location outside of the airport, such as Ennis.
Close to 200 refugees have arrived into Clare over the past few days and Co-Ordinator Orla Ní Éilí says they’ll need ongoing support.
