Michelle Courtney (56) has lived in the Emmet Buildings flat complex on Watling Street in Dublin 8 all her life, first with her parents and now in a flat of her own.
Her mother died at 67 after being admitted to hospital with pneumonia. “I’d say a lot of it was down to the mould in her bedroom,” says Courtney.
Her daughter now lives in the flat Courtney grew up in. The mould and damp has affected Courtney and her children’s health too, she says.
“My two grandkids have breathing problems,” she says. “The youngest little fella has asthma and eczema. The bedroom he was sleeping in was covered in black mould.”
Her story is not unique. A survey carried out by researchers at Maynooth University and funded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found chronic mould and dampness, as well as faulty windows and insufficient insulation in the majority of the Emmet Buildings flats.
The door-to-door survey of residents in the Dublin 8 complex was carried out between October 2024 and January 2025.
[ Children missing school because of mould and damp in flat complexes, Dáil hearsOpens in new window ]
Of those surveyed 82 per cent reported that the windows and doors in their flats were old and need replacing, and that this was contributing to condensation, damp and mould growth.
Sixty-two per cent said the mould, damp and difficulty heating the flats was affecting their health, with many reporting respiratory problems such as asthma, chest infections and COPD.
Tony Doonan (81) has been living in the complex for 30 years. He says his single-glazed windows have faulty handles and gaps in the seals.
Draughts enter, bringing cold at night and morning, he says.
Doonan suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and vascular disease. He has a letter from his doctor to Dublin City Council in support of his application for double-glazed windows.
“Cold weather and draughty, cold living conditions increase his risk of infection and hence hospitalisation,” the September 2024 letter reads.
Doonan is waiting to hear from the council about his windows being changed.
“I’m not the only one that needs these windows,” he says. “The rest of the residents who can’t afford to buy their own windows do need them, you know. And in this day and age, we should all have triple glaze.”
The council needs to be standing up and saying: ‘This is not acceptable’, and putting pressure on central Government
— Fiadh Tubridy of the Community Action Tenants Union
The residents of Emmet Buildings joined Dublin City Council tenants from across the city on Monday to protest over their living conditions and the poor maintenance of their flats.
Fiadh Tubridy is one of the authors of the report on conditions at Emmet Buildings and a member of the Community Action Tenants Union (CATU), which organised the protest. “Very similar issues are coming up in a lot of council estates across Dublin”.
“Really common problems like damp and mould and high energy costs are not getting the investment that they really urgently need,” says Tubridy.
A recurrent issue the union sees is that the council cannot afford to retrofit flat complexes unless the block is part of a regeneration project.
“Regeneration depends on central Government funding, and that funding is just not coming through, which is obviously a Department of Housing issue. So, to some extent, the council is limited in what it can do,” she says.
“But the council also needs to be standing up and saying: ‘This is not acceptable’, and putting pressure on central Government.”
Tubridy says she hopes protests such as this at Dublin City Hall provide the council with “leverage” to tell the Government that “people are not happy” and funding is needed.
