A grandmother in her 70s who is a cancer survivor has had to take two jobs so she can apply for the State's Defective Concrete Blocks Scheme.

In 2008, Mary O’Regan relocated to Manorcunningham, County Donegal, to be closer to her daughter – but, 15 years later, she finds herself on the brink of homelessness, as her home teeters on the edge of collapse.

Ms O'Regan's home is suffering from the effects of defective concrete blocks which contain more than the maximum permitted amount of the mineral mica.

Speaking to Lunchtime Live, she said her 2016 cancer diagnosis coincided with her decision to apply for planning permission on the home to allow her daughter to move in.

Following this, Ms O'Regan suffered a serious brain injury due to a fall which has left her with no sense of taste or smell, balance problems and severe fatigue.

Costs

As she applied for planning permission, Ms O'Regan raised concerns about cracking paint on the side of the home, which were squashed by architects, who assured her there was no mica present.

At the time, Ms O'Regan had a part-time job in Dublin, which helped her with household costs.

"I used to travel to Dublin on Monday morning – I get up here at four o'clock in the winter, I get up shortly after three in the summer," she said.

"I get the bus from Strabane to Dublin."

Ms O'Regan then took on a second job as a school bus escort in order to fund the mica testing, which cost her €7,000.

"We got 90% back, but [under] this new scheme, people aren't going to be asked for that money and I think we should get our [last] 10% back – I sure could do with it," she said.

Blocks

However, later that year, a surveyor confirmed that the defective concrete blocks had been used.

"I didn't know what to do," she told the show. "The surveyor said there was an organisation that started, The Mica Action Group and I joined it."

During her first meeting with the organisation, Ms O'Regan said members were considering lobbying the banks for mortgages – which she did not have.

"A main member of the committee said to me, 'Well, this scheme won't suit everyone,' and you can imagine how I left that meeting," she said.

Health

Ms O'Regan's house is now slated for demolition, according to the Housing Agency.

"I know for a fact there's 800 people in the group I'm in and then there's all these other new people coming," she said.

"If we don't have somewhere to move to we can't get the house done.

"Unless I have somewhere to move to and to get my furniture to, I have nothing.

"The Government had the precedent for pyrite in Leinster, all they had to do with that was lift it and put it onto mica and defective blocks.

"They have dragged it out and dragged it out – it's unbelievable what they have done and what they are putting us through."