Month: October 2013

A JUDGE has issued a stark warning that more lives will be lost to addiction if drug treatment services in Ireland continue to be under resourced.

Judge Gerard Keys was commenting following the death of Ennis man James Sherlock Jnr earlier this year.

The 24-year-old wheelchair-bound amputee was found unconscious by his brother near the green of the eighth hole of Ennis Golf Club in August. It is thought Mr Sherlock had spent a period of time squatting in the area.

Mr Sherlock, formerly of Childers Road, Ennis, was a heroin addict who lost both his legs as a result of complications arising from his addiction.

He lived rough for a while in an abandoned squat in Ennis and was awaiting sentence for setting fire to the Lakes Nursing Home in Killaloe on August 20, 2010. Judge Keys had adjourned sentencing for the purpose of ascertaining what help Mr Sherlock could get to deal with his drug addiction and what accommodation could be found for him.

“It is with a great degree of sadness that I read in the newspapers the circumstances of the death of James Sherlock,” Judge Keys said at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday.

“He was a troubled young man with huge problems and with little or no adequately-resourced facilities to assist him in dealing with his drug addiction and the medical complications which arose there from. In this court I said this man cannot be abandoned,” added Judge Keys.

He continued, “I am now compelled to say that until the problem of drug addiction in this country is tackled and a sufficient number of properly resourced facilities put in place by the State, there will be more deaths of this kind and our prison population will increase.

“I passionately believe that if a sufficient number of properly-resourced facilities for drug addiction were established it would radically reduce crime levels, reduce our prison population and save lives.”

He conveyed his sympathies to the Sherlock family.

At James Sherlock Jnr’s funeral in Ennis last August, parish priest Fr Tom O’Gorman also spoke of the dangers of drug addiction.

“Drugs led him [Jimmy] down the wrong path and the shackles that they hold on people can lead to death,” Fr O’Gorman told mourners.

A FACILITY for Kilrush, similar to Lee’s Road in Ennis, will be the “premier project” for Clare County Council this year.

The project planned for the Cooraclare Road in Kilrush is to include pitches, running tracks and astro turf facilities.

The project has been submitted for national sporting grants by Kilrush Town Council previously but with as yet no success.

The town council executive is confident that the project will be successful in securing grant funding this year and has also submitted it for consideration in a new national fund.

Town manager Anne Haugh explained that the county manager had agreed that the Kilrush project would be the primary project on a list seeking funding from the new national scheme – Sport Nation.

The new grant aid system is supported through the Public Bodies and the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, with each department providing one third of the funding up to € 58,124. The remaining third needs to be raised from the local authority’s capital fund.

The council agreed that the first phase of the project to require funding should be the astro turf area.

The town council had previously agreed to set aside € 150,000 of money earmarked for special projects to the proposed Cooraclare Road Sports Development.

A lease for 25 years has also been signed for such the facility on the Cooraclare Road.

IT HAS finally been decided that the Kilrush Famine Memorial is to become part of the streetscape of Francis Street, but the town engineer will determine its exact location.

After much deliberation, Kilrush Town Council decided that the street where the 2013 National Famine Commemoration was held is to be the permanent home of the monument unveiled during the ceremony in May.

The local authority received just one response to a public consultation on the issues.

Groups and organisations involved with the commemoration had a number of suggestions however as to where in the town it should be located. Early suggestions that the Old Shanakyle Cemetery, where victims of the Great Irish Famine lay in a mass grave, would be the ideal location was ruled out.

Mayor of Kilrush Cllr Paul Moroney (Ind) said that the Kilrush and District Historical Society, the organisation that bid for the National Commemoration to be held in the heritage town, had indicated they would like the monument to be placed outside the town hall in the town square.

The mayor suggested relocating the dolphin sculpture in the square and placing the monument there.

At Thursday night’s meeting of the council, Cllr Marian McMahon Jones (FG) said that the dolphin could not be moved as it was part of a dolphin trail.

Town manager Ann Haugh explained that the two locations being considered were either side of the town hall or at two locations on Francis Street.

Cllr Mairead O’Brien (Ind) who was mayor during the commemoration told the meeting that the Famine Commemoration Committee agreed that Francis Street, outside Noel Ryan’s would be the preferred location.

“Ultimately we could put a bench there and a floral display and people could take time to sit at it,” she said.

As CCTV is proposed for that location, the council was unsure whether this would mean the monument may have to be placed elsewhere.

A location outside the Bank of Ireland on Francis Street was then proposed as another possible site.

The council voted to erect the monument on Francis Street and agreed that the town engineer would decide between the two proposed locations on that street.

THE hundred thousand welcomes the 30,000 plus crowd gave to the victorious Clare team when they arrived back in Ennis with the Liam McCarthy Cup, was worth an estimated € 1 million to businesses in one evening alone.

It would appear that the Clare fans heeded the words of Clare hurling manager Davy Fitzgerald when he told them to forget the recession for a while, during the official homecoming at Tim Smythe Park (Fairgreen) in Ennis.

According to the CEO of Ennis Chamber of Commerce, Rita McInerney, the Sunday night homecom- ing was hugely beneficial, as people from all over the county converged in Ennis.

A conservative estimate of the money spent on the evening is approximately € 1 million said the business people’s representative.

“People had to spend money on petrol to come to Ennis, more spent it on food and drink when they were here and there was all the jerseys, flags and bunting that was purchased,” said Ms McInerney.

She estimated spending at an average of € 30 per person.

“That includes people who spent € 5 for a coffee and a snack to those that spent € 150 and stayed out until 5 in the morning,” she explained.

The build up to the All Ireland and the replay was not as profitable however, as people saved for the trip to Croke Park, she explained.

“People had to budget for the All Ireland and couldn’t spend in the run up to the game, but it was worth it because we were in an All Ireland. The businesses were happy to take in on the chin. It was such a great honour to be in the All Ireland,” she said.

“Obviously there was going to be a pull back on spending because people don’t have money, but on that night they came out in support.”

She added that the media focus on the county as a result of the team’s success was also hugely beneficial to the county.

“You couldn’t buy publicity like that,” she said.

“And the Liam McCarthy Cup is going to be here for a year so there will be plenty more celebrations I am sure.”

THE Banner feel-good factor is spreading. Just days after the county hurlers gave everyone in Clare a reason to be cheerful, new results from the CSO have confirmed that the number of unemployed people in the county has reached a five-year low.

The number of people signing on the live register in Clare fell to its lowest level since February of 2009 last month.

In what is being seen as a big step forward for the county, this is the first time in almost five years that the number of people signing on dropped below the 9,000 mark.

September is traditionally a good month for the live register in Clare – with a large number of third level student returning to full time education and coming off the live register.

Between August and September of this year the number of people signing on dropped off dramatically from 9,613 to 8,983 – a drop of 6.5 per cent.

However, this drop is not just a seasonal drop as it also represents a year on year drop of 691 people – representing a drop of 7.1 per cent compared to 2012.

The drop in the number of people signing on was led by Ennis where the live register number dropped from 5, 528 in September of 2012 to 5,094 – a drop of 8 per cent.

While there is no concrete figures for job creation in Clare, it is understood that the tourism sector has had a good season to date, prompted in some way by the reduced VAT rate and the positive effects of the Gathering.

It is understood that the Government are likely to increase the VAT for the hospitality back up from its current two-year low of 9 per cent – a move which could threaten employment in the county’s tourism sector.

This news come hot on the heels of a survey from Hotels.com which reported that room prices in hotels were actually increasing.

These claims were strongly rejected by Lahinch hotelier and and president of the Irish Hotel Federation, Michael Vaughan, who described it as “outrageous” and said that the survey used too few hotel room prices to be accurate.

THE search for a 42-year-old man who was washed into the sea off North Clare will resume this morning. Naval divers are due to resume their search for the Latvian national around 10am this morning, October 8, after bad weather brought an end to last nights search effort.

With more settled weather expected this morning, it is hoped that the mans’ body can be located close to Ballyreen, where he entered the water in Sunday evening.

The man had been fishing with a number of friends at a spot known as Fisherman’s Climb in the popular fishing location between Doolin and Fanore on Sunday evening when he was washed into the ocean by a freak wave. A friend raised the alarm and then attempted to swim out to reach the stranded man.

However, while the friend was swimming to rescue the man, the victim – who has not yet been named – was washed under the water. Despite an intensive search led by a number of rescue agencies, including the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coast Guard, the man has not been sighted since. The man’s friend, who dived into the water to save the 42-yearold man, was assisted by emergency services and treated on site for the effects of cold. “The search has been stood down for the night because of poor weather conditions and the hope is now that the divers to be able to enter the water tomorrow morning,” said Mattie Shannon of the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coast Guard last night. “We are hopeful that the divers will be able to come up with something tomorrow. It is a very exposed spot and if something is not discovered soon it could be very difficult to locate.” It’s understood that man was not wearing a lifejacket and may have been dragged beneath the waves by his heavy clothing. The area has been the scene of a number of tragedies in recent years including the death of a two men in separate fishing accident in Ballyreen in 2009.

THE family of a Kilfenora man Brian McMahon, who tragically lost his life in California over the weekend, flew out to America yesterday to be with his wife and children.

Father of two Brian McMahon was killed in a car accident in the Californian city of San Rafael on Friday morning last. Mr McMahon, who is 46 years old and has been living in America for a number of years, was out walking close to his home just before 8am, local time, when the ac- cident took place.

The exact details of the accident are not yet clear but it appears that Mr McMahon was struck by a single vehicle on the street close to his home at 7.45am. Emergency first aid was given to Mr McMahon at the scene at he was rushed by ambulance to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead.

“San Rafael police officers and San Rafael paramedics located an unconscious 46-year-old man lying in the roadway. Life saving measures were immediately initiated. The male sub- ject was transported to Kaiser Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival,” said a spokesperson from the local police department.

“The driver of the involved vehicle remained on scene and called 911 to report the collision. Numerous bystanders were interviewed at the scene.

“The driver fully cooperated with the investigation. At this time, it appears neither alcohol nor any other impairment was present or a factor in this collision. The involved vehicle was taken for a thorough inspection.”

Police are reportedly investigating the possibility that the driver may have been blinded by the bright morning sun and did not see see Mr McMahon out walking. Mr McMahon was home in Clare in August and was due to return with his sons for the All-Ireland hurling final but was unable to do so because of work.

Mr McMahon is survived by his Tipperary born wife and his his two children aged 13 and 11 years old. He is also survived by his father Murty McMahon, his American-based brother John and a number of siblings based in the North Clare area.

A HOMEGROWN Clare company that has been in business for 34 years has been acquired by one of the world’s largest elevator companies.

In a statement last week, American giant Kone announced that it had purchased Ennis Lifts, a local company specializing in the supply, installation, modernization and maintenance of elevators, escalators and autowalks.

Ennis Lifts Limited was founded in 1979 by C.P. McGuinness. Since then Ennis Lifts has grown to become the largest national lift and escalator company in Ireland, also serving Europe and the Middle East.

A statement on the company’s website states, “The cornerstone from which the company has developed has been providing excellence at all levels to our customers, thus becoming specialists in the supply, installation, modernisation and maintenance of lifts, escalators and walkways.”

Kone’s executive vice president and area director for central and north Europe, Ari Lehtoranta said the company is “delighted” with the purchase of Ennis Lifts.

“We are very pleased to have Ennis as a part of Kone. The acquisition will strengthen our business in the challenging Irish market.”

According to Kone, Ennis will continue to operate as a separate company under its current name and brand.

Kone is one of the global leaders in the elevator and escalator industry. In addition to manufacturing elevators, escalators and automatic building doors, it provides maintenance to its global customers. Worldwide, it employs about 35,000 people including 325 in the Quad-Cities, a group of five cities on the Illinois / Iowa border.

The company’s North American headquarters are located in in Lisle, Illinois. Kone Americas’ operations centre is at Kone Centre in Moline. The company has an escalator plant is in Coal Valley, Illinois.

No one from Ennis Lifts was available for comment when The Clare People contacted the company yesterday.

GARDAÍ say efforts to track down an East Clare man suspected of the wholesale dealing of drugs in the county are ongoing.

The man was the target in 2011 of a major Garda operation against drug dealers operating in Clare.

The man, who is in his forties, fled the jurisdiction after being arrested two years ago on foot of a major drugs find on the Clare/Tipperary border. He is thought to be on the run in a Northern area of England.

The man was described at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court on Thursday as being a suspected “wholesale dealer of drugs in Clare and Limerick”.

Garda Gary Stack of Ennis Garda Station told the court that the man was the target of the operation and that investigations into his whereabouts are continuing.

“We are following a definite line of enquiries,” added Gary Stack.

Judge Gerard Keys ordered that the man’s name not be disclosed in the media after Counsel for the DPP, Stephen Coughlan BL, warned that it could prejudice any potential trial against him.

Details of the Garda operation emerged at the sentencing of a Killaloe man who pleaded guilty to having cannabis for sale or supply at Ballina on November 14, 2011.

Jonathan Grimes (33), of Main Street, Killaloe, was the driver of a car carrying almost five kilos of cannabis resin, with an estimated value € 28.432.

Mr Grimes was one of two people who travelled to Dublin to collect the drugs. The court heard that the civil engineering student was asked by another man to make the journey. Garda Stack told the court that Mr Grimes had some idea he was going to collect drugs but had no idea of the quantity involved.

He said the other man may have taken advantage of Mr Grimes, who received € 150 and € 30 petrol money for driving the car. The other man has since fled the jurisdiction the court heard.

The court heard Mr Grimes had never come to Garda attention previously.

His barrister, Kenneth Kerins, said his client had developed serious drug and alcohol problems but has dedicated the last two years of his life to recovery and counselling.

Passing sentence, Judge Gerard Keys said it was accepted that Mr Grimes did not know the size of the consignment and was not the main person in charge of the transaction.

He imposed a three-year sentence, suspended on condition Mr Grimes continue his education and an rehabilitation.

CLARE third-level students drink more per person than students from any other county in Ireland. According to a survey of more than 3, 500 students attending University College Dublin, Clare students drink more than 351 alcoholic beverages per year or almost one a day.

This means that students from the Banner county are Ireland’s biggest drinkers. Students from Cork, Waterford, Kilkenny and Dublin also featured high in the survey with students from Donegal, Mona- ghan, Carlow and Tipperary North amongst the countries lowest drinkers.

According to the study, which was carried out by ‘Discover Magazine’, the social and economic background of a student did not have a direct correlation with the amount that that student drank.

“We find relatively small effects of parental background variables on how much their college attending children drink. Neither father’s education, mothers’ age, whether a parent is still married, and parental incomes have any statistically significant effects on students’ drink- ing,” read the study.

The study did find that parents drinking habits did have an influence on their children, with a mothers drinking effecting all offspring while a fathers drinking only tending to influence male offspring.

“We find that drinking of mothers significantly impacts the number of drinks consumed by both female and male students about equally. But drinking of fathers appears only to influence drinking of their college attending sons,” it said.

Boys who attended an all-boy’s school, or a boarding school, also went on to drink more in college.