I’m from a place called Bandon, a country town at the gateway to West Cork. You may or may not have heard, but Bandon, like a lot of the rest of the country, was flooded out of it last week. Quite devastated in fact. I felt so helpless listening to the news from my mother and sister, and seeing the photos on friends Facebook pages. I cannot imagine how gutted the whole town is, I was close to tears just hearing about it, I cannot imagine living it.  

But things are looking up. The waters have receeded, businesses are opening up again, and the community spirit is in full swing. ‘Keep your business in Bandon, keep Bandon in business’, its a great motto to live by. Fair play to the folks at bandon.ie for spreading the word. Lets hope other towns can pull together and get back on their feet in time for a festive celebration.