The demand for hostel accommodation for veterans who have fallen on hard times is on the increase, according to the Organisation of National Ex-Service Personnel.
The charity, which supports veterans of the Defence Forces, says all three of its existing hostels are full, with 37 veterans staying at their Smithfield hostel in Dublin, seven more in their Letterkenny hostel, and another seven veterans living in their hostel in Athlone.
This weekend will see the opening of their fourth hostel - and their first in Munster - at Cobh in east Cork, close to the naval base at Haulbowline.
The former Social Welfare office on Harbour Road has undergone a €500,000 renovation funded through ONE's Fushia fundraising campaign, the Department of Defence and from the Dormant Bank Account fund.
The new hostel includes en-suite accommodation for five male or female veterans as well as a walk-in veteran support centre.
Such is the demand for beds that plans are well advanced for a fifth hostel, this one based in Cork city.
"Homelessness can happen anywhere - Cork, Limerick, Waterford, wherever - and our aim is to actually put a safety net under the veterans that are leaving, without pensions in particular, or those with pensions as well, and anyone encountering mental health problems." said Paddy Mulley of ONE.
Speaking at a fund raising recital by the Army Band of the 1st Brigade in Cork city centre this week, Mr Mulley said that while there are no official figures they believe there are at least 16 veterans currently homeless in Cork.
"We would find that these people are floundering in their lives and a helping hand leads them into a normal life and once they get a bit of routine back in their daily lives, they go onto permanent housing and often pick up jobs, and we would give them supports right across the spectrum of their needs."
"We have had veterans sleeping on the streets of Cork, there are still a few of them on the streets, they are in hovels, the system has failed them"
The organisation currently has 54 beds and is providing 20,000 bed-nights annually for homeless veterans, but demand is on the up.
Mr Mulley says the new hostel in Cobh will provide a "safe and secure" environment for Defence Forces personnel who may be going through difficult times.
One of those behind the opening of a veteran's hostel in Cobh is secretary of the local Cobh branch of ONE, Diarmuid Higgins, himself a former navy electrician.
"We have 37 beds in our Smithfield hostel and they are full, we have seven beds in Athlone, full, and we have seven beds in Letterkenny, full. We have five beds here and they will be filled by the end of October.
"We have had veterans sleeping on the streets of Cork, there are still a few of them on the streets, they are in hovels, the system has failed them," he said.
"They served their country at home and abroad and then they were left on their own, out the gate, goodbye. We are addressing that issue now."
Cobh's new hostel on Harbour Row will be officially opened by Minister for Defence Simon Coveney tomorrow.
