'A very dangerous time for elderly people', at risk of hypothermia during cold snap

Elderly rights campaigner Paddy O’Brien: 'People are going to bed early to try to stay warm and some won’t even watch their TVs.' Picture: Jim Coughlan

Elderly people are at particular risk in this arctic weather, advocates warn, with some already admitted to hospital with hypothermia.

Dr Colin Byrne, consultant geriatrician at the Mater Hospital in Dublin, has seen cases of hypothermia in older people this winter, often because they feel they cannot afford to heat their homes.