THROUGH the lens of an iPhone, a former councillor captured the emptiness and uncertainty of lockdown in Enniskillen. 

"Walking in Enniskillen during lockdown I was struck by the emptiness of the streets," said Frank Britton. "They were deserted. This was not the town I knew. 

"It was different, silent, and indeed, eerie."

Mr. Britton's photos, taken on Monday, April 27 at 11am, captured a significant moment in local history. 

They are now on display at Enniskillen Museum, as part of the Creative Reflections Exhibition. 

The images, Mr. Britton feels, will resonate with many as they capture an experience that was all too common during lockdown - empty streets. 

"Here was a new experience, and a new townscape," he said, speaking on the photos. "When travelling to somewhere in Asia or Africa, it is easy to get the newness of a place and capture the differences of life you know. 

"Now this is what was happening in Enniskillen. It was like travelling in a strange country. The place I was familiar with had taken on a new expression, and it was not a happy one. 

"Missing was the human presence. People gave the town meaning, and they were absent. In such a deserted place, something strange had happened. People had been told to stay away."

Indeed, it was the emptiness of both the town centre, and Erneside Shopping Centre, that resonated the most with Mr. Britton. 

 "At this time the town and shopping centre are normally busy. What is recorded is a town deliberately cleared of its people, its commercial and administrative heart shut. It's like something out of a sci-fi film."

Mr. Britton added: "Other aspects of lockdown are not shown here.  It is important to acknowledge what happened in other spheres of local life; the lives lost, education stalled, our hospital overwhelmed.

"What  is shown here is only one aspect from that time, a time when lives and life were altered, sometimes forever."