Category: News

RELOCATING homes inland is not an option for the residents of the town land of Cloughnainchy near Seafield whose houses had been flooded during the high tides and storms last winter, or a solution to further floods this winter.

Local resident Danny McCarthy ruled out the relocation proposal likely to be offered to some homeowners in other parts of the country as the Office of Public Works and Local Authorities begin work on addressing flooding and coastal erosion.

Last evening (Monday) the residents of Cloughnainchy, Quilty, re- ceived confirmation that € 200,000 has been released by the OPW to begin work on a feasibility study at Tromore West. This is the area along the coastline which includes Cloughnainchy, where the sea invaded 14 homes and swept away an acre of land out to the sea in January.

Clare County Council put the cost of addressing the coastal erosion and flooding issue in Cloughnainchy at € 4.7m. The feasibility study will fully cost storm and flood defence works at this site, which will then be presented to the Government department who will decide if work is feasible.

Mr McCarthy was hopeful last night that the study could begin immediately and that work on prevent- ing the natural disaster of earlier this year could begin soon.

“We are hoping it begins long before April when it was initially thought work would begin at the earliest,” he said. “We have already lost six months when nothing was done.”

Mr McCarthy, whose home was one of 14 flooded in the area, said the committee worked very hard with Clare county councillors to get the work even to this preliminary stage.

He ruled out any suggestion that moving the three to four houses nearest the coastline would be a financially savvy solution.

“This is a tourist road as well. Hundreds of people walk the two mile sandy beach, it is not just about the houses,” he explained.

According to sources close to the OPW suggestions have been made that it may be less expensive to build new homes for families affected by flooding than to begin substantial coastal protection works.

Former Minister for State with responsibility for the OPW Brian Hayes told The Clare People yesterday (Monday) that relocation was not likely to be a suggestion for Seafield and was never considered for this area during his time in charge.

“This is also private land and not public land,” he pointed out.

He confirmed that the OPW may consider it as a solution in some areas if there are yearly flooding events and it makes economical sense.

BY now a host of Clare sports stars, politicians and musical personalities have all taken the plunge this week with the Ice Bucket Challenge taking the county by storm. The challenge, which involves filming yourself while someone pours a bucket of ice and water over your head, is part of a major fundraising drive in aid of Motor Neuron Disease.

Clare’s All-Ireland hat-trick hero, Shane O’Donnell, was one of the first stars to to get himself wet during the week when he took the challenge during the inaugural Shane O’Donnell Summer Camp.

The Éire Óg club man nominated Podge Collins, footballers Colm Cooper and Jack McCaffrey as well as Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, to take up the challenge while also donating € 100 to Motor Neurone Disease Ireland (MND).

Clare TD Timmy Dooley (FF) has put himself in the firing and took the challenge over the weekend.

Deputy Dooley called out his fellow Clare TDs Michael McNamara (Lab), Pat Breen (FG) and Joe Carey (FG) – none of whom have yet posted a video (as of Monday evening). For more see page 13.

GARDAÍ in West Clare and the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals are investigating what a dog warden with more than 20 years experience described as “the worse case of animal cruelty ever seen”.

Clare dog warden Frankie Coote said he was shocked at the state of the four-year-old German Sheperd discovered in a yard in West Clare. The animal who was still alive was too weak to move and was being eaten alive by rodents and maggots.

Mr Coote was not expecting the harrowing scenes that were to greet him in West Clare on Monday last, following an anonymous tip to the ISPCA.

“In 23 years I have seen a lot of animals suffering and dying but this was by far the worst. I believe the dog could not have moved from the position in five to six weeks and he was being eaten by maggots and rodents,” he said.

Parts of the young dog’s limbs were dismembered from the rest of his body, Mr Coote recalled, visibly distressed by the incident.

“I thought the dog was dead, and said as much to the guard with me, until I went to take the photo and the dog moved. The flash went off and I couldn’t believe he was still alive,” said the warden who is employed by the ISPCA and works full time with Clare County Council.

In a heartbreaking description of the dog rescue Mr Coote described how despite the agony the dog was in, he lifted his head and licked the warden’s face he lifted him from the yard.

“The dog was so gentle. He was licking my face as I was lifting him out. He could only lift his head. The only muscles still working in his body were in his neck. It was one of the kindest dogs I have ever come across,” he said.

Mr Coote was disappointed the dog had to be humanly destroyed.

“We had to put the dog down. Even examining the dog would have been cruel. I hate even saying this but there were parts of his body left on the ground as we lifted him,” he said, adding the vet was shocked at the state of the animal.

“Many rescue groups offered to take the dog but he was beyond help.”

Gardaí and the ISPCA are investigating and it is understood they are following a definite line of inquiry.

Mr Coote encourages anyone with concerns about an animal’s welfare to contact the ISPCA on 1890 515 515 and support the work of the charity whenever possible.

MOTORISTS are advised to expect delays in Ennis following the introduction of a one-way system aimed at alleviating traffic congestion outside one of the county’s biggest schools.

Clare County Council implementing a new one way system at Lifford Road, also known locally as Dr Daly Road.

Works to put in place the new traffic system commenced yesterday and are expected to last for approximately two weeks.

In May, members of the former Ennis Town Council gave the go-ahead for the system, which will see traffic run one way from New Road to Lifford Road.

The council proposed the system to address heavy traffic congestion at Ennis CBS primary and secondary schools around opening and closing times.

In a report to councillors at the time, executive engineer Alan Morrissey stated, “A number of near miss incidents have been reported at the school warden crossing point adjacent to this junction. Traffic congestion on New Road was cited as a major contributory factor.

“A number of cars are parking on a long stay basis at the New Road end of the L4556, which exacerbates traf fic congestion in this area at school pick up times,” he added.

In its submission to the council, CBS primary school said enrollment at the school has grown in the last few years leading to an associated increase in traffic congestion.

The school states the proposed scheme would provide a marked al- leviation to the problem. However in their submissions, residents and landowners on Lifford Road objected to the new one-way system. One resident said the proposal to “discharge traffic onto Lifford Road R352-455, will not work because it is a much busier road with restricted visibility to the right.” Another resident states, “The proposal aims to solve a traffic conges- tion issue that occurs for 20 minutes per day, 167 days a year by permanently directing traffic to a dangerous junction. The short-term congestion is far more acceptable than the proposed scheme.” Works at Lifford Road will take place typically between the hours of 8am and 6pm over the next two weeks. Traffic management control measures will be in place and will include restrictions on use of the road and the use of stop/go traffic control. Clare County Council are advising the public to reduce speed in the vicinity of the works and to expect delays, owing to the road works and traffic management controls in place. Local access will be accommodated at all times, the Council says. Dr Daly Road is the road that runs alongside the Fair Green from New Road (at the CBS Primary School) to Lifford Road (near St Joseph’s Hospital). The council states, “Under the new one-way system that traffic will be one-way northbound on Dr Daly Road, i.e. from the junction with New Road (L4554) in the direction of Lifford Road (R352-455). Informal pedestrian crossing points will be provided as part of the scheme. On street parking with a maximum stay of two hours will be provided along the western side of the road, closest to the Fair Green. Parking will be prohibited along the eastern side of the road.”

FAMILLIES of Clare people affected by addiction are increasingly seeking help from one of the midwest’s largest addiction treatment centres.

The Ennis-based Bushypark residential treatment centre has increased the level of services on offer to families to meet a growing demand for their provision.

“There are a number of people trying to access assessments or residential treatment programmes or our outreach services,” explained Mar- garet Nash, manager of Bushypark Treatment Centre.

“There has been an increase in service required for family members affected [by drug alcohol abuse, gambling]. We have a new family support services running, additional ones in Ennis and Limerick.

Ms Nash said it has been an “extremely busy year” for the centre, which provides around the clock addiction treatment and outreach services to people in the mid-west, Galway and Kerry.

“We have developed a number of new services during the year. We’ve set up an outreach project in conjunc- tion with other services in Kilrush for clients in the West Clare are that need to access service in relation to alcohol or drugs,” she added.

Ms Nash was speaking ahead of a major fundraiser in aid of Bushypark. The third annual Bushypark Golf Classic takes place in Ennis Golf Club on Saturday, August 30.

This event is an important fundraiser for the centre. Teams of four are € 120 or € 30 for individuals.

The event can also be supported through tee or green sponsorship. Further information is available from 065 6840944.

Ms Nash said the centre is grate- ful for the support it has received throughout the years.

“We’ve had a lot of loyal supporters throughout the years: People who are grateful; people who have accessed our services. Money has got scarce but people’s goodwill is still good to us. People are delighted with the services we offer them,” she said.

BushyPark Addiction Treatment Centre was founded in 1991 by Clarecare with funding and assistance from the Mid-Western Health Board.

It provides services at 16 locations throughout the country. Ms Nash said a growing number of people are coming forward to seek help with addiction.

“There are more people coming forward in relation to dealing with addiction which is good. I think people are more likely to confront issues. Hopefully the stigma has been reduced. It’s not broken but its reduced. People are starting to come forward. There is a link between mental health and addiction and people are beginning to deal with both issues, which is great,” she said. “We’re finding it a very mixed age. There is no upper limit. That’s good too, that people haven’t decided at 65, ‘I’m too old to deal with this’.”

LAST week’s opening of a new state-of-the-art rescue centre at Doolin brings to an end almost 20 years of campaigning for proper facilities for the volunteers of the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coast Guard.

For decades, the local volunteers have been forced to work in cramped conditioned and store valuable rescue materials in their own homes because of a lack of space at the old rescue centre. The old station could only accommodate one of the Doolin Unit’s rescue boats and was prone to flooding during the winter months.

Funding for a new station was originally announced by the Department of the Marine and the Office of Public Works (OPW) in the late 1990s but was only forthcoming in recent years. The defects of the old station came to the attention of the public in November of 2005 when a lengthy search operation was undertaken for three Clare men, who tragically lost their lives in the area.

Speaking yesterday, Mattie Shannon of the Doolin Unit said he never doubted that the new state of the art centre would be built.

“We knew that the day would come sometime – but God only knows when. We had been campaigning for it [the new centre] for more than 20 years now. I remember Liam Kirwan [former Director of the Irish Coast Guard] said to me 20 years ago that if we got a location that they’d build the new station,” he said. “It is a great addition and it definitely going to lift the spirits of the unit. It’s a great centre for people to come and see as well. We will try and have people there on Sundays and at the weekend. If people see the doors open then they are more than welcome to come in and have a look around.” Mattie also appealed to the public not to park in front of the new centre as doing so will block the launch of the rescue boats. “We have one issue at the moment and that is parking and I’d like to appeal to the public on that. We need space across the road from the centre to be able to launch the boats. We need the full width of the road in front of the centre for about 25 metres either side of the gate. It may look awful to see that place empty and people struggling to park cars on top of each other but we need it if we have to launch the boat,” he said. “We might only have to launch once a week or once a month but we need [that space] when we have to launch. We know that new parking arrangement are coming from next year and we would urge people to keep the space clear in the mean time. Vehicles will have to be towed away if they are parked in the way. I don’t think anyone would intentionally park in front of the lifeguard station but if someone wasn’t thinking they could obstruct a rescue.”

AS MANY as 11 children under 14 years old were killed or seriously injured on Clare roads during the six years between 2006 and 2012.

New research from the Road Safety Authority (RSA) has revealed that one child was killed and 10 children were seriously injured on the county roads during this period.

The report was published by the RSA along with Electric Ireland as children and teenagers from all over the country prepare to go back to school.

For the fifth year running the two organisations will distribute 85, 500 high visibility vests to every child starting school this year.

The vests will be included in the RSA’s ‘Back to School’ road safety packs which will be sent to primary schools nationwide over the coming months.

The RSA is urging parents, guardians and teachers to make road safety a priority as 13 children under the age of 14 have died in the first eight months of this year on Irish roads.

In 2013, six children lost their lives, meaning the number of child casualties so far this year has already exceeded the total number of child deaths in 2013.

Six of the children who died on our roads this year were pedestrians, six were car passengers and one was a quad bike user.

A report on child casualties between 1997-2012 found that one in three of the child fatalities in this period were not wearing seatbelts or a child restraint.

This report showed that 44 per cent of children who were killed in the 15year period were pedestrians and 42 per cent of children who were killed or seriously injured were passengers in a car.

According to the RSA the peak time for children to be killed on roads is late afternoon/early evening, between 4pm and 5.59pm and during the summer months of April to August.

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Paschal Donohoe encouraged parents and teachers to renew their commitment to educating young road users about road safety.

“The increase in child casualties on our roads this year is incredibly worrying, after many years of seeing year-on-year decreases.

“Attitudes to road safety are formed at a young age and we would urge parents and teachers to continue to prioritise teaching our youngest and most vulnerable road-users how to stay safe on the roads.” Monica GALLAGHER(née nee McTague) , Cappahard Cott age, Tulla Road, Ennis. Peacefully at her home. Monica. Laid to rest in Drumcliffe Cemetery. Donations if desired to the National Breast Cancer Research Institute Galway or the Samaritans. May she rest in peace. James J PEARSE , Cappakee, O’Briensbridge. Peacefully at Millbrae Nursing Home Newport. Funeral Mass in Bridgetown today(Tuesday) at 12 noon withburialafterwardsin the church grounds. May he rest in peace.

THE construction of a new rescue centre at Doolin will help save lives by improving response times by the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coast Guard.

The centre, which was built at a cost of € 1.8 million, is large enough for all materials owned by the coastguard to be stored in one place, which will cut response times in emergency situations.

The new building, which will become fully operational this week, was due to be officially opened in October of this year but it is now understood that an opening ceremony will not take place until March of 2015.

“This will make it much more ef- ficient for us, all the equipment is in the one place so when the team comes there will be no searching around for equipment or anything everyone knows where it will be. It will take a few days to straighten it out and get everything in place but at the same time it will all now be in the one building and that’s what is important,” said Mattie Shannon of the Doolin Unit of the Irish Coast Guard.

“It will make us faster, especially for boat launches and emergency situations. Then as well when they [the volunteers] come back there will be more comfort. There will be changing rooms and bathrooms and showers and a proper area to wash down the boat.

“All the volunteers have been in over the past week, they have been transporting equipment from the various places that we store it, and there is still more to be done. The volunteers are working away, fitting out different systems like the wifi and things like that. We are still waiting for the communication aerial to be erected for the VHF radios and the paging system, they are going in this week. At that stage we will be fully operational.

“We are delighted to be moved in. We launched our first boat from the new centre last week and we have launched three times already. It’s a fantastic place and it’s going well.”

PLANNING permission for a further development of facilities at the Ennistymon Community Hospital has been lodged with Clare County Council, with hopes high that construction work could get underway before the end of the year.

The hospital, which serves as a facility for older people from the North Clare area, has been threatened with closure on three separate occasion over the last 10 years with the facility staying open and then growing as a result of heroic fundraising by the Friends of Ennistymon Hospital.

Construction work on phase one of the hospital’s redevelopment is almost finished with a grand opening due to take place in the next month. Planning permission for phase two of the development was lodged last week and involves the construction of a single story extension which will include eight ensuite, bedrooms as well as a new sitting area.

The hospital, which is located on the site of the old Ennistymon Workhouse, is a listed building – a fact which was taken into account in the planning permission.

The projects was put forward by Friends of Ennistymon Hospital, who have raised in excess of € 3 million for the hospital over the past 30 years.

“This is phase two of our five-year plan that we are into now and we are hopeful that planning permission can be secured as quickly as possible,” said Tomsie Sullivan of the Friends of Ennistymon Hospital.

“We decided from the beginning that we were going to take this in phases and make sure that the hospital was going to remain open before we spent large amounts of money donated by the local people. The hospital has been threaten with closure on a number of occasion in recent years.

“This second phase will include the provision of eight single rooms and the fundraising for this is already underway. We will be outlining our fundraising plans for 2015 when we officially unveil the completed phase two in the coming weeks. We estimate that we have raised in excess of € 3 million for the hospital since the Friends of Ennistymon Hospital started its work back in 1984.”

Phase three of the development will see a major upgrade of the existing rooms and facilities at the facility to bring them up to the standard of the new constructions.

THE people of Doolin have heralded the beginning of a new era following the opening of a new sea rescue centre in the village last week.

The € 1.8 million facility, which became operation last week but will not be officially opened for a number of months, has been the subject of intense local campaigning over the last 20 year.

Operator of Doolin Cave, John Browne, yesterday welcomed the new centre – describing the conditions in the old facility as “crazy”.

“It is such a necessary facility, the old situation that the coast guard was forced into was crazy – trying to get a boat down Fishers Street in an emergency,” he said.

“They [the coast guard volunteers] are such an important part of this community. It is important that they have the proper facilities to do their work.”

The new centre was also welcomed by Eugene Garrihy of Doolin2Aran Ferries.

“The facility is of huge importance to the work carried out by those brave men and women. In our ferries, it is a massive comfort to us to know that we have a back-up in the event that anything goes wrong,” he said.

“The coast guard have been waiting for this facility for some time now and any help that this could be for them and their work is very welcome. It brings to mind the great work that people like Mattie Shannon and Thomas Doherty have been doing for years, but also the men that came before them.”