The head of one of Cork's most respected charities says it's only a matter of time before people are found dead in their homes due to the cold.
Caitriona Twomey from Cork Penny Dinners was speaking at a press conference in Blackpool yesterday ahead of a planned cost of living protest in the city later this month.
The Cost of Living Campaign is made up of local politicians, housing activists, student groups, charities and the parents of children with disabilities.
They're calling for thousands of people to gather on Grand Parade on the 17th to let the government know that nothing apart from a long term plan to deal with the crisis is acceptable.
Speaking to RedFM News, Caitriona Twomey from Cork Penny Dinners says many people are facing a very stark winter.
"People are afraid in their own homes, the people on the streets are petrified.
"It's only a matter of time before we find people dead in their homes because they're afraid to turn on their electricity or their heating.
"I feel as a whole, that people in this country if we all come together just to say that people are suffering, we don't like it - I certainly don't like it, I don't like what I have to deal with every single day.
"I know the people that are going through it are hurt beyond measure, they cannot even put it into words."
