Category: News

THE South African man who claimed he was abused by a Christian Brother, who was later named as Clarecastle native Brother Gerard Dillon, has claimed he was “very badly used” by RTÉ in its controversial ‘Mission to Prey’ documentary.

Tyrone Selmon had told the documentary that was aired in 2011 that he was abused at the Christian Brothers College in Pretoria, but now two years later has blasted RTÉ over their decision to attribute that abuse to Brother Dillon.

“The interview I gave the Irish TV programme was never supposed to be a direct accusation but a first hand account of what I experienced,” he said.

“I have been very badly used and have had to endure countless strangers contacting me from numerous newspapers and TV programmes around the world expecting that they have a right to my life.

“I must make it very clear that I have never been shown the programme, have never seen how it was edited or what was said. I stand by my words, however find it horrid that names were used as it was my understanding that this would not be the case,” he added.

Brother Dillon’s family have vehe- mently denied that any abuse took place and as part of their defence of the Clarecastle born brother who died in 2005 they have assembled the testimony of 17 other men who were in the dormitory in the school at the same time as Mr Selmon.

“We had two meetings with RTÉ last year and we gave them a 96page document of testimonies from ex-students all supporting Br Gerard Dillon and pointed out that we could find not one person to back up these claims,” said Brother Dillon’s niece, Marian Dillon.

“They say they have people to back up the claims but when we asked them for the evidence they refused, saying they had journalist privilege.

“If Br Gerard was still alive they [RTÉ] would have to defend this in the High Court but we can’t even get basic information from them. We are left in limbo because of their unnamed sources,” she said.

“What they [RTÉ] did was one of the worst things you could do to a family. RTÉ have forgotten it. They have forgotten us and moved on but we can never move on. We are still banging on doors.

“On the family’s side, we will not stop. We want the truth. RTÉ dragged the entire family into this and we are still living with this atrocious untruth. However, the support we have received is unbelievable from all over Ireland and South Africa and we will continue,” she said.

“RTÉ has recently received correspondence on behalf of the family of Br Dillon and will be responding to them in due course. RTÉ’s position on the matter has not changed,” and RTÉ spokesperson said.

A “VULNERABLE” young pregnant woman has been remanded in custody so she and her unborn child can receive necessary care and treatment, a court has heard.

The woman was the subject of an extensive two-day search by gardaí in Ennis earlier this month after serious concern was expressed for her and her unborn child at Ennis District Court after she missed a number of drug addiction appointments.

A bench warrant was issued for the arrest of the woman after she failed to appear in court. The 19-year-old appeared back in court in Ennis yesterday following an alleged breach of bail conditions. Inspector Tom Kennedy told the court that gardaí received no response when they called to the woman’s house following the issuing of the bench warrant.

Insp Kennedy told the court that such was his concern, he authorised gardaí to force open the door. The woman, who in the apartment, was then brought before Limerick District Court where bail was again approved on condition that she again comply with all directions of the Probation Services.

Insp Kennedy applied to have the woman, who has pleaded guilty to drugs charges, remanded in custody.

Insp Kennedy said the woman had failed to turn up for scheduled appointments and had “led each and every one of us on a merry dance” around the issue of her care. This application was resisted by defence solicitor Tara Godfrey who urged the court to allow her client to remain on bail to attend future appointments.

The court heard the woman started abusing drugs aged 14. Ms Godfrey told the court that people to whom her client owes money for drugs had recently kicked in the door of the 19 year old’s apartment and taken her keys. “She is particularly vulnerable and dependent on services,” Ms Godfrey added.

She told the court that a failure to attend meetings was not a strong enough reason for the State to deprive her client of her liberty.

Insp Kennedy said the remand in custody was necessary. “It’s incumbent on the State to ensure she gets the treatment she requires,” he added.

Insp Kennedy said no complaint related to alleged break-in at the woman’s apartment had been made to gardaí.

The woman told the court that she was unable to attend appointments because she does not drive and has no family support.

Judge Mary Larkin said she was “quite satisfied” the woman had been in breach of her bail conditions. She remanded her in custody to appear again at Limerick District Court tomorrow. Judge Larkin also ordered that the woman’s name not be reported.

THE organisers behind the Ballyvaughan Bay Hop are examining the possibility of adding a number of mid-day sailings to the trial service which gets underway next Monday, September 2.

The service was officially launched on the Ballyvaughan Pier on Sunday with a family fun day presided over by the Mayor of Clare, Cllr Joe Arkins (FG).

The launch also saw the first journey undertaken across Galway Bay by the fast ferry – with passengers making it to Galway City is 28 minutes before and returning to Ballyvaughan in just 25 minutes.

“It was a really great day. Most of the village was out at the pier for the opening ceremony and the entertainment and the atmosphere was really good,” said Gwen Ryan of the Ballyvaughan Bay Hop.

“We took a number of people out on the boat around the bay before we made the journey across to Galway. Professor Kevin Leyden of the the Whitaker Institute at NUI Galway and Carol Gleeson from the Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark travelled on the first crossing along with a number of local politicians.

“I think everyone was surprised at how quickly we made it across to Galway and back again. It shows that it really will be a big benefit for people commuting to and from work each day.

“We are now looking at the possibility of adding a few extra sailings for the trial – maybe during the afternoon. These sailings would be aimed at tourists but also at people who might look at using the service to commute to work but are not in a position to try out the service at other times.”

The trial is being supported by the Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark under the TransTourism Project. The trial will be used to measure the potential social, environmental and economic impacts a marine passenger service would have on Ballyvaughan and the Burren.

The aim of Ballyvaughan Bay Hop is to establish a rural commuter fast ferry service from North Clare to Galway. Commuting on the ferry twice a day would reduce the average travel time between Ballyvaughan and Galway by more than two hours.

For more information or to buy tickets call www.ballyvaughanbayhop.com or visit www.facebook. com/ballyvaughanbayhop.

CLARE had its best day on the jobs front for a long, long time yesterday when landmark Shannon company EI Electronics announced the creation of 70 new jobs.

The company, which has just celebrated it 50th anniversary in Shannon, announced that it would be swelling its local workforce from 430 to 500. This represents the largest single jobs announcement in Clare since the start of the recession in 2008.

The company, which is one of the real success stories of the Shannon Free Zone, is 100 per cent Irishowned and has become a world leader in the field of fire safety.

It already contributes an estimated € 30 million to the local economy each year and the new expansion is lightly to increase that figure by more than € 3 million.

In addition to it’s Shannon staff, the company also employs more than 50 people on mainland Europe – mostly in Germany and France. All of its high-skilled work, including research and manufacturing, takes place at it 12,000 square metre facility in Shannon.

The company is already one of Clare’s leading exporters – with more than 95 per cent of the good manufactured on site destined for the European market.

“I am delighted that EI Electronics has decided to expand its operation in Shannon with the creation of 70 jobs. This will have a direct benefit on a large number of individuals and their families. It is also a real vote of confidence in Clare and the wider region, as a place to do business,” said Clare Senator Martin Conway (FG).

“This expansion will make a significant difference to the wider region, and will undoubtedly lead to additional jobs being created in connected industries. The success of the workforce in EI Electronics is also proof that our indigenous companies can prosper and thrive.”

The company will host an open day for current and former staff members in Shannon later this week.

“As a major employer for 50 years, many thousands of people have worked at EI, covering three generations. This EI diaspora is spread over the counties of Clare, Limerick, Kerry, Cork, Tipperary, Galway and Mayo,” said managing director Michael Guinee.

“The Open Day gives these past employees the opportunity to come back to their alma mater, see the factory and possibly meet up with old colleagues.”

AN INVESTMENT of less than € 800,000 would be enough to secure homes for 55 Clare families, many of whom have been on the waiting list for a number of years.

According the figures obtained from Clare County Council, there are currently 55 local authority houses out of commission in Clare – and in need of only minor works to being them back into circulation.

A needs assessment carried out by the council earlier this year revealed that there are currently 1,671 peo- ple in need of social housing in the county. While the cash-strapped local authority has had some success securing funding for housing in recent weeks, it is unclear when they will have finding available to bring all of these houses back into their housing stock.

Clare County Council was granted € 500,000 last week for the provision of six houses for people with special needs, while it also secured sizable funding for house retrofitting – which will upgrade the insulation on 250 social houses – earlier this month.

“As at mid-year a total of 55 social housing units are vacant but this fig- ure is subject to change on a weekly basis as vacant units are returned to stock and units become newly vacated. The estimated cost of returning 55 units to stock is € 775,000, or approximately € 14,000 per unit,” said Bernadette Kinsella, Director of Services with Clare County Council.

Meanwhile, the Irish Council for Social Housing (ICSH) have shortlisted Glensheen Court, developed by Banner Housing Association for the 2013 Social Housing Awards.

Glensheen Court is a housing project for people with disabilities located within 1km of Ennis town. Each apartment in the development apartment includes two bedrooms, two accessible bathrooms, along with a kitchen/living area with each apartment having a private open space area to the rear.

A number of special safety features have also been incorporated into the scheme to enhance tenant safety and security including front door keypad, visual telecom along with alarms in each bathroom. The Banner Housing Association is a non-profit charitable organisation based in Ennis.

The winners will be announced at a gala dinner held at the ICSH National Social Housing Conference which takes place on September 18.

GARDAÍ are investigating the circumstances of the latest fire at a € 2.2 million Traveller accommodation site in Ennis.

Three housing units were damaged following an incident of alleged criminal damage at the Beechpark halting site last week. Gardaí say an accelerant was used to douse the buildings but it did not ignite for some reason. However considerable smoke damage was caused to the building’s interiors. No one was hurt in the incident as the Beechpark site is currently vacant. Clare County Council was in the process of a € 15,000 refurbishment of the property when it was damaged

In a statement, a council spokesman said the costs the damage had yet to be ascertained. He explained, “The site was vacant at the time. The council was in process of refurbishing the property when it was damaged. The contract value was € 15,865 excluding VAT.

The contractor had just commenced on site therefore the actual cost of works undertaken will be substan- tially less than the contract value. The cost of the damage has yet to be ascertained. However, the roof and parts of the interior ceiling were badly damaged by fire.”

The Beechpark development was completed in 2004 at a cost of € 2.2 million.

In February, Clare County Council revealed that it had no plans to refurbish or rebuild Beechpark following a series of arson attacks on Traveller accommodation.

The council had been forced to install CCTV cameras to prevent against further attacks.

The latest incident at Beechpark comes just days after a separate suspicious fire at another vacant Traveller accommodation site in Ennis.

The incident occurred at around 1.50am on Saturday, August 17, when a vacant house at the Ashline site on Kilrush Road caught fire in what Gardaí described as “suspicious circumstances”.

The fire service attended the scene and the Gardaí in Ennis are investigating the circumstances of the fire. This is the second time this year that fire has broken out at the Ashline site, which cost € 1.7 million to build.

FAMILY, friends and former colleagues gathered to pay tribute to retired Garda Superintendent, Frank Doris, who passed away in Ennis last week. A native of Longford, Mr Doris worked in Kilrush and Ennis during the seventies and eighties. The 89-year-old father of three retired from the force in 1986.

Prior to coming to Clare, Mr Doris was a highly respected Detective Inspector with the Garda Fraud Squad in Dublin. He worked on a number of high profile cases during his time in Dublin and was one of the lead investigators on the Shanahan Stamp auction case in 1959 when a businessman was arrested for fraud after thousands of investors lost money in a huge scam involving the sale of Irish Free State Stamps. He was well known in legal circles and during his time in Clare, Mr Doris is said to have brought a deep knowledge of criminal law to his role as a Garda prosecutor in court.

Mr Doris, who lived in Roslevan, had a strong interest in sport, fishing and shooting. He played for the Longford senior footballers in the fifties and retained a keen interest in horseracing.

At his funeral mass in St Joseph’s Church in Ennis on Sunday, Mr Doris was recalled as a loving father, good friend and respected colleague. Burial took place in Newtownforbes, Longford. He is survived by his loving wife Rosaleen, daughters Elizabeth and Yvonne, son Thomas, grandchildren, family, extended family and many friends. JUSTAFEWWORDS . . . Colin Ryan is surrounde d by me dia at Clare ’s official p re ss night ahead of t he All-Ire land se nior hurling final in t he Temple Gat e Hot e l last Tue sday.

PILOT inexperience has been identified as one of the possible causes of a plane crash which took place at Shannon Airport in 2011.

According to investigators at the Department of Transport’s Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU), excessive speed as well as pilot inexperience caused a major issue aboard an Aer Arann flight.

There were 21 passengers and four crew on board the Aer Arann Manchester to Shannon service when its nose wheel collapsed, controls jammed and it left the runway on July 17, 2011.

Nobody on board was seriously injured in the incident, which resulted in the plane scraping along the ground for 1,200 metres before coming to a stop on a grass verge.

According to one witnesses, smoke or steam could be seen billowing from the front of the 17-year-old aircraft while its left propeller crashed through and demolished a sign on the runway.

The aircraft was so badly damaged that it has been taken out of service and has not been repaired.

In its report, the AAIU states the plane approached the runway on two occasions in excess of the recommended speeds.

The then newly-promoted pilot was a “relatively inexperienced” captain according to the report, and had little experience handling the aircraft in difficult conditions.

Investigators said this inexperience was a contributory factor in the accident, along with inadequate information being provided to both her and her co-pilot about landing in crosswinds.

The likely cause of the incident was excessive speed and inadequate control of the aircraft during the blustery conditions, it was found.

The AAIU has ordered Aer Arann to review its training of pilots in landing aircraft in crosswinds as a result.

A ROCK climber cheated death in the Burren on Friday afternoon after falling almost 25 feet from a sheer cliff and landing on his back. The climber, who has not been identified, is recovering in hospital after miraculously surviving the fall at a popular climbing spot between Doolin and Fanore.

The man, who is in his thirties, sustained serious injuries to his lower spine and arms in the incident – which took place around 3.15pm at Ailladee, close to the famous Mirror Wall.

The man was wearing a climbing helmet and harness and was saved by his equipment, and by the quick thinking of his friends who immediately contacted the emergency services.

The Doolin Unit of the Irish Coast Guard responded to the incident and administered first aid. The Shannonbased coast guard helicopter arrived at the scene minutes later but was unable to find a secure landing space.

Instead, a paramedic was lowered from the helicopter and spinally immobilised the man and transported him, with the help of the Doolin Coast Guard, to a clear area where he was winched into the helicopter and transported to University College Hospital in Galway.

The extent of the mans’ injuries are unknown but he had complained of severe lower back pain and other injuries.

“We responded to a call and discovered a seriously injured 32-yearold man close to the Mirror Wall between Doolin and Fanore. The climber had fallen between six and seven metres and was was severely injured,” said Mattie Shannon of the Doolin Coast Guard. “He was wearing a climbing harness and a helmet, which probably saved him, but it appears that the ropes may have come away from the wall somehow. He was suffering from severe pain to his lower back and injuries to his shoulders and arms.”

The cliffs at Ailladee and Ballyreen, located on the coast road between Doolin and Fanore, are some of Ireland’s premier climbing cliffs. They are a popular destination for climbing groups and are also used for Irish Army training as well as training for the coast guard and other rescue services.

Earlier this year a man was struck by the falling stone while climbing in the area and was airlifted to hospital for treatment.

AS MANY as 33 babies’ blood results may have been reported incorrectly at the two maternity hospitals serving County Clare.

According to a statement issued by the HSE there are two mothers from the Maternity Hospital Limerick who may have required anti-D but did not receive it, as a result of incorrectly labelled blood testing kits.

One of the blood group test kits, Ortho BioVue System Cassette, used as part of routine hospital blood group check at the time of delivery, was reported to the HSE by Irish Medicines Board.

A number of the testing kits sup- plied worldwide had been incorrectly labelled.

These kits were used at the maternity hospitals in Limerick and Galway.

This means that there is a small chance that the results of some blood group tests may have been incorrectly reported in some cases. The manufacturer has estimated that the potential risk of a kit being labelled incorrectly is less than 1 in 11 million.

As a result of this error, it is estimated that 27 mothers at the maternity hospital Limerick and 31 at the Galway hospital got anti-D when they many not have required it.

No babies at either of the regions maternity hospitals received red blood cells when they did not need it, according to the HSE.

There may be mistakes in the blood tests however in up to 14 babies born at the Limerick hospital and 19 born in Galway.

All mothers and babies who were tested using the affected kits have been contacted by letter.

“As part of the response to this, every hospital who used these type of kits has completed an inspection of the remaining kits in stock and has removed any potentially affected batches. Each hospital has also conducted a review of the results of the testing done using these kits in each hospital,” said a HSE spokesperson.

“There is a small chance that babies who were tested using these kits may have been incorrectly blood typed,” he said.

“The risk of a baby’s blood group test result being incorrect is extremely low as the manufacturing error related to a label being incorrectly affixed to the test kit.”