The dream home in Ireland, like Connecticut, is turning into a nightmare due to the dangerous minerals in the concrete.

In Connecticut, pyrrhotite caused the basement walls to crack and collapse. However, if there is any mineral that can rival pyrrhotite and destroy houses, it is Irish muscovite.

Due to the muscovite contained in the concrete block walls, large houses in Donegal County, Ireland are falling off. This type of mica weakens the concrete so that it is easy to dig a hole in the wall with a nail. (By the way, Muscovite is quite common in Connecticut.)

"I want to throw this house away," said Veronica Lafferty, her four-bedroom house in Carndonagh overlooking lush green fields. "It's not safe. We have been through it for 10 years. I have had enough."

Nearly 800 homeowners are familiar with Ireland’s plight, and they have filed complaints with the state about cracked basement walls.

'We are called nut jobs'

Mrs. Lafferty's home is one of thousands of homes in the northernmost part of Ireland that are believed to contain excessive amounts of muscovite. Most concrete blocks can be traced back to a manufacturer.

However, the homeowner is reluctant to sue because it is expensive to litigate in Ireland and the manufacturer does not have insurance.

The Lafferty family was unable to repair their house. Therefore, they can only turn to the government that fails to protect them.

However, the Irish government has spent tens of millions of euros in repairing houses 150 miles south of Dublin that have been deformed by another mineral, pyrite.

Fortunately for the Lafferty family, Donegal County has the Mica Action Group, which includes its two leaders, Irene Dougherty and Ann Owens.

With the help of other affected residents, the two homeowners launched an extraordinary campaign. In six years, they have grown from a small band meeting around Ann's kitchen table to more than 1,200 registered members.

On May 14, the government promised to pay 90% of the house repair costs. The Minister of Education especially praised Ann and Irene.

"We are called unreasonable making trouble, we are called crazy work, from the local level to everything before the meeting with Leo Varadkar [Irish Prime Minister]," said Ann. Her daily job is to serve as the county's information officer.

It is citizens like Irene and Ann that force the government to recognize that dangerous concrete is a community problem—and a failure of government oversight—not just bad luck.

In 2013, local engineer Damien McKay talked about abnormal cracks in houses on the beautiful and windy Inishowen peninsula in Ireland on a local radio program, which is the core of the mica problem. The telephone line lights up.

He then held a public meeting in Letterkenny, the county's largest town. A hundred people showed up—on a cold Thursday night, that was a considerable number for a small town with only 19,000 people.

He suggested that the homeowners unite. Mica Action Group was born in the home of Ann Owen. Irene is an early member.

At first, the organization asked the government to investigate. They were told, “You have no evidence that this is a big problem. Even if you do, it’s not our problem,” said Irene Caffe Banba in Marinehead, Ireland’s northernmost town.

So Irene created an online registration form. She has a doctorate degree. In terms of corporate management.

She asked more than 1,200 people not only to register, but also to fill out detailed questionnaires. The Mica Action Group then convened a meeting, and 350 people including famous politicians attended the meeting. They will be warned that if they do not show up, their names will be written on the empty chairs on the stage.

The homeowner told the politicians their story. "People are yelling and the big man is sobbing into the microphone," Ann said.

Within a few weeks, these women held the first of several meetings with ministers and members of parliament in Dublin. Their findings determined the affected areas and the construction dates of the houses — and showed that most houses have the same block supplier.

However, there is another obstacle: The Mica Action Team must prove that the homeowner has nowhere to go.

"This is done by writing to insurance providers, mortgage providers, lawyers, etc.," Irene said.

Nonetheless, the team knows the possibility is high. Parliament is already helping thousands of pyrite-damaged houses around Dublin. "There are a lot of votes there. We are too far away geographically," Irene said.

A politician told them, "You girls better stop. You must stop exaggerating the numbers."

But it is becoming more and more obvious that mica is eroded not only in families, but also in schools and welfare housing.

In 2015, the investigation sought by the Mica Action Group began. A report two years later found that nearly 5,000 houses may contain mica.

Last fall, the Prime Minister personally came to check on the losses. "This must be resolved, this is fair," he said.

This is the victory of the kitchen table strategist.

A few years ago, across the Atlantic Ocean, Canadian homeowners adopted a slightly different strategy.

Pyrrhotite is destroying the basement of Trois-Rivieres-the same mineral is affecting northeastern Connecticut. Canadians mobilized in 2009.

They held several demonstrations, spoke at the shareholders meeting of the company that built the house, and practiced "e-mail torture", asking insurance and government officials every day for a year.

The organization is now named Coalition d'Aide aux Victimes de la Pyrrhotite (Alliance to Aid Pyrrhotite Victims), and it eventually got the government to pay for repairs to thousands of houses. It also won a major reform of the home warranty program.

At home, Tim Heim and Cheryl Kranik started the Connecticut Coalition against the crumbling basement in 2016, and shortly after that, reporter George Coley broke the pyrrhotite story in NBC Connecticut. Hundreds of people attended the conference of the alliance, and its Facebook page was followed by nearly 3,000 people.

Connecticut also has what they call "the crumbling concrete queen." The group participates in every public meeting about pyrrhotite and educates politicians on the bench. It includes Linda Tofolowsky, the first known pyrrhotite victim; Debra MacCoy, her desk is full of research; Christina Beebe Mailhos, Wellington’s former first choice; Mary Anne Williams , Let reporters understand the news of pyrrhotite; and engineer Michelle Burnham.

Their work and the heartbreaking stories of many other homeowners told in newspapers and TV made lawmakers take pyrrhotite seriously. The state will provide 100 million U.S. dollars in five years to repair houses. The insurance surcharge is expected to raise another US$70 million in at least ten years. There are also tax reliefs for victims.

The ancient Romans knew how to make concrete that could be used for the 19th century. Many houses in Connecticut cracked after 19 years. Unfortunately, today's consumers are so poorly protected from low-quality concrete. The exciting thing is that when they unite, they can get justice.

All these leaders - from Ireland, Canada, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, which also has pyrrhotite problems - will speak at the public forum at Ellington High School on October 5th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Carolyn Lumsden is a 2018 Puliam editorial writing researcher for the Association of Professional Journalists and is working with The Courant to continue researching specific issues that are crumbling in Connecticut. Ramsden retired in December as the opinion editor of The Courant.