Category: News

A STORE in Ennis was held up by two men, one armed with a knife, on Saturday night last. The two men entered XL Stores in the Market in Ennis at around 8pm. One of them men threatened a staff member with a knife, demanding money while a second man stood at the door as a lookout.

Both men then escaped on foot with a sum of money taken from the cash register.

Shortly after the robbery gardaí on foot patrol noticed two men behaving suspiciously and gave chase. Following the chase one of the men was subsequently apprehended while the second man got away.

Gardaí arrested the man who was apprehended and he was teken into custody and will shortly appear in Limerick District Court.

The second man is still at large and gardaí in Ennis are appealing for help in tracking him down.

Anyone who saw anything suspicious around the Market area of Ennis on Saturday night around 8pm are requested to contact gardai in Ennis on 065-6848100. No-one was injured during the robbery.

* MEANWHILE there were a series of burglaries on Clare over the past week and gardaí are urging members of the public to be vigilant where stolen goods in particular might be offered for sale.

A bar and restaurant in Bunratty was broken into in the early hours of Monday morning.

Thieves entered the premises through a rear windown and disabled the alarm before removing a safe from the building. A silver or grey coloured vehicle was seen near the area.

Between 2.30am and 3am, also on Monday morning there was a breakin at the leisure centre in Tullyvaragga, with the rear door forced open to gain entry. A small amount of cash was taken, gardaí in Shannon are investigating both incidents which may be related.

In East Clare gardaí are investigating a number of criminal incidents over the course of the past week.

The home of an elderly woman was burgled and ransacked in Killaloe on Friday night last between 7.20pm and 10.55pm.

In Bodyke oil was stolen from a tank at a home in Ballydonaghane sometime between Tuesday and Saturday of last week.

Two strimmers and some batteries were stolen from a recycling centre in Scariff on Monday night last at around 8.20pm.

Four barrells of Guinness were stolen from two pubs last Tuesday, one from a pub on Tulla’s Main Street and three stolen from outside a pub in Kilkishen.

In West Clare gardai are looking into a number of thefts. In Ennistymon a house in Lavereen was broken into last Friday afternoon, thieves gaining access through the front door.

Items stolen included a red Honda power washer, Makita 9 inch and 6 inch angle grinders as well as deisel from a tank.

In Kilrush’s Vandeleur Woods a car was broken into last Friday night and a purse with cash in it was taken, along with an iPod and iPhone.

A 52 inch black Panasonic TV was stoeln from a house in Ballinagun, Cree during a burgalry that took place in the early hours of last Saturday morning.

Gardaí are also investigating damage to two headstones, which were vandalised in the New Shanakyle Graveyard in Kilrush over last weekend.

Last week there was a tractor stolen in Monreagh, Tubber.

The Massey Ferguson 165 was red and white in colour and brackets for the front loader were attached to this tractor. A W OMA N accused of stealing €400 froma primary school in Ennis is due to appear in court again tomorrow. Eva Makulova (32) with an address at 3Ardlea Close, Ennis is charged with entering Carrig Donn, Ennis on October 7 (2012) and taking the €2810. Ms Makulova has also been charged with the theft of €400 fromthe Holy Family Primary School on September 7 (2012). She is also charged the theft of perfume fromCassidy’s Pharmacy, O’Connell Street, Ennis on September 2 and 3. Garda BrídTroy gave evidence of arrest, charge and caution at Ennis District Court on Friday. Gardaí objected to bail, citing the seriousness of the alleged offences as one of the reasons. Solicitor Tara Godfrey said her client would be willing to abide by strict bail conditions. Judge Patrick Durcan refused bail. He remanded Ms Makulova in custody with consent to bail subject to the accused’s own bond of €1500 and an independent surety of €5000. Judge Durcan adjourned the case until October 24 for directions fromthe Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). Inspector Michael Gallagher told the court that DPP’s directions may not be ready by Wednesday. Judge Durcan said,“If bail is not taken up I would be conscious that the DPP’s directions are to be dealt with expeditiously.” A MA N has appeared in court charged with criminal damage at and Ennis estate earlier this month. Dylan Dinan (20), with an address at 6Water Park Court, Ennis is charged with damaging the windscreen and bodywork of a van at Maiville on October 11. Mr Dinan appeared at Ennis District Court onWednesday.The court heard that he gave no reply to charge after caution. Inspector TomKennedy said the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had not yet issued directions. He said the incident at Maiville was part of a “wider situation” in Ennis. He told the court that further people may face charges in relation to the incident. Judge Aeneas McCarthy approved bail subject to a number of conditions. Mr Dinan was ordered to stay away froma named family and area of Ennis. He was remanded on continuing bail to appear again at Ennis District Court on November 21 for DPP’s directions.

THE North Clare coast could be about to become the new centre for organic salmon in Europe, following plans to construct Ireland’s largest organic fish farm off the Burren coast.

The Irish Fisheries Board, Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), plans to create two identical farms, located side by side about five miles north-west of Doolin, directly west of Fanore.

The farms could create more than 500 jobs, with 350 people employed directly on the farms, 150 in support industries and a number of other possible spin-offs in the North Clare economy.

According to BIM, the farms have been designed to operate at the highest environmental standards and specification, which is how their farmed salmon can be classified as organic.

While conventional farms allow for about 95 per cent water to 5 per cent fish, the farm operator will be required to maintain a ratio of 99 per cent water to 1 per cent fish.

According to Donal Maguire of BIM, the farm could begin spawning in autumn of next year or the spring of 2014.

“There are two times of the year when it is suitable for salmon to spawn – in November or in March. All going well, we are aiming to have this up and running for November of next year but, failing that, I think that March of 2014 is a very makeable deadline,” he said.

“We are looking for companies who could take on the operation of the fish farm. There are Irish companies who would have the capability to take this on, as well as international operators. So we will have to wait and see how the tender process goes.”

BIM are about to begin a period of public consultation for the project. After the consultation period, they will forward their final recommendation to the Department of Agriculture for approval.

Once approved, the contract to build and operate the centre will have to go to tender before any work can begin.

There is already some local opposition to the project, with one North Clare local, who asked not to be identified, saying that there are many potential downsides to such a large-scale fish farm.

“There are a lot of issues still to be resolved and there is growing opposition to the project, both in North Clare and on the Aran Islands,” he told The Clare People yesterday.

“It is difficult to see how a farm that big would not have a negative effect on the water in Galway Bay and on the local crab and lobster stock.” DON’T FORGET: Th e c lo c ks g o b a c k a n h o u r t h is we e ke n d , a t 2a m o n Su n d a y m o rn in g t o b e e xa c t !

ACADEMICS, students and oil companies from all over the world have begun to travel to the Clare coast to get an up-close glimpse of Clare’s rare “sand volcanoes”.

A large number of these rare volcanoes, which were formed more than 300 million years ago, have been preserved along the Clare coastline but are incredible rare elsewhere in the world.

The sand volcanoes are created when large amounts of sand and mud are released in a short space of time, such as at the mouth of a large river.

When a large amount of material is deposited, water can become trapped between layers of sediment.

Eventually this water is forced upwards, bringing with it sand and mud which flows to the surface and deposits material in a cone shape, similar to a volcano.

These structures are sometimes turned to stone when large amounts of pressure are applied to them and, in very rare instances, they can become exposed again.

The Clare coast from Doolin down to Loop Head has one of the highest instances of preserved sand volcanoes in the world.

“People in the geology community have been aware of these in Clare for a while, especially people in the oil companies who come here to study them and how they might impact on oil exploration,” said Dr Eamon Doyle of the Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark.

“There is only a number of these in Clare but they are quite rare worldwide. These things are still forming in different places in the world, like the Mississippi Delta, but to get them preserved like this is very rare.

“There is a stretch from Doolin right down to Loop Head where they are at a number of different locations. They formed when Clare was much further south – close to the equator – and the Clare coast would have been very far underwater.

“Since then, we have been moving slowly north and there has been an uplift as well as a certain amount of erosion. “It is this rare set of circumstances which has made and preserved these sand volcanoes in Clare.” Groups come from all over the world to view the sand volcanoes. Dr Doyle visited a number of sand volcanoes along the Clare coast with two of Ireland’s leading experts on the subject, Professor Pat Shannon and Peter Houghton from UCD, last week.

NEXT Monday will be a day to remember for a group of over 100 runners drawn from throughout the county who will take to the starting line of the Dublin City Marathon under the Clare Crusaders banner.

The athletes, who range in age from their 20s to their 60s, will be taking part in the gruelling 26-miles and 385-yard test as a fundraising exercise for the Clare Crusaders Clinic which was established by the late Howard Flannery.

This year will see the biggest ever number of Crusaders to take part in the marathon after local organis- ers set a target of having over 100 people clad in the distinctive orange Crusaders garb for the Bank Holiday Monday event which will have over 10,000 participants.

“We knew from the start that we wanted to bring in a lot of new people to the event this year,” says Ronan O’Reilly who, along with Siobhán O’Reilly, assumed responsibility for organising this year’s Clare Crusaders team.

“David Ghilardi came up with the idea of 100 people to take part in the marathon and we knew we had to go for it. Our motto became ‘Think Big, Believe Big, Act Big and the Results will be Big.’

“And it worked. The whole 100 drive gathered a life of its own. More and more people started showing up for the Saturday morning training sessions. We got calls from all over. The more people that joined, the more that wanted to join,” adds McMahon.

The 100 drive means that the Clare Crusaders group will be one of the largest taking part in what will be the 32nd annual Dublin City Marathon.

“How will we feel in Dublin, seeing 100-plus people in orange on the steps of Buswells Hotel for a photograph before the races, all willing to put it on the line for a great cause?” says McMahon.

“I think overwhelmed is the right word.”

THE full recognition of the Mol an Óige Steiner National School in Ennistymon is once again unclear, despite it appearing a mere formality a year ago.

The school, which has been Clare’s fastest growing primary school in recent years, has complied with a number of conditions laid down by the Department of Education over the last four years.

However, it has emerged that officials from the department wrote to the school’s board of management seeking written assurances in relation to the “curricular objectives” of the school.

It has also emerged that a number of extra reports concerning the school have been commissioned by the department – and neither the school nor its patron body were aware of the extra reports being commissioned or been allowed to view or respond to them.

The school’s board of management wrote to the Minister for Education, Ruairí Quinn (LAB), earlier this month, highlighting the extra “secret” reports and requesting that some progress be made on the issue as soon as possible.

“We now request on behalf of the children, their parents and the staff of our school, in accordance with the process agreed between the Department and our Patron Body, that the process moves to the next step whereby the parents, the Board and the Patron Body may make their submissions to you, the minister, so that you may then move towards granting our school permanent recognition,” said the statement.

A deputation from the school met with officials from the Department of Education in Dublin last week. However, it is as yet unclear if any concrete progress was made at this meeting.

Mol An Óige began with just seven students in 2005 and has grown to 124 students over the last seven years.

The school secured Lifeways Ireland as a patron a number of years ago.

THE loss of the Aer Rianta International to the Dublin Airport Authority is a further nail in the coffin of Shannon International Airport.

That is according to the former Director of ARI, Liam Skelly, who believes that the Shannon-grown business would provide essential financial support to the ailing airport.

He believes it was unfair to hand over the ARI to a profitable Dublin Airport when Shannon is struggling for survival.

“Aer Rianta International was always known as a Shannon operation,” said Mr Skelly.

The former ARI Director said that Shannon Airport had been “fiddled” out of up to € 400 million in the last decade as it did not get its fair share of ARI profits and sale of assets.

Aer Rianta was set up in Shannon at a time when the three main airports in Ireland – Shannon, Cork and Dublin – were run by independent boards.

It began with the first ever dutyfree and a mail-order department. It was through the airport’s association with Aeroflot that the fuel farms were set up during the fuel crisis of the 1970s.

The Shannon-based Aer Rianta then put in a successful bid to open the first duty-free in Russia at Moscow airport, before expanding to airports all over Russia.

In the 1980s, ARI bought the Great Southern Hotel Group and later invested £30 million in Birmingham Airport.

Mr Skelly believers that the sales of those assets – the Great Southern Hotel Group for € 265 million and the Birmingham Airport shares in 2006 for € 325 million – were not divided evenly between the airports and Shannon did not get its much needed share.

Instead, the money went to the DAA, which was managing the three airports.

“That went to build terminal two in Dublin,” he said.

“A lot of stuff that belonged to Shannon went to Dublin and there was no one on the streets protesting. It went to an airport in profit and this airport was abandoned down in the west of Ireland,” he said.

“Sometimes I get really sad that a vibrant airport has fallen into absolutely nothing at the moment,” he said.

PROSPECTIVE home owners in East Clare can shelve the idea of buy- ing a small family home and instead pick up an entire housing estate, for just € 400,000. The partially finished estate, which is located less than a five-minute walk from the centre of Killaloe, contains two completely finished show houses, 14 houses which require some work, two in shell condition and nine at the foundation stage. Taken all together, the guide price values the estate at just under € 15,000 per house. But that’s not all, the sale also includes a second 6.3 acre site where planning permission had previously been granted for 50 houses. The entire 10-acre property is being offered to the market jointly by Harry Brann and Savills of Cork. Speaking to The Clare People yesterday, Denis O’Donoghue of Savills said there has been a lot of interest in the site since it came on the market last Wednesday. “The interest levels have been really really high, both locally and from all over Ireland. We haven’t got a serious offer yet but we have a large number of people coming to take a look at the estate over the next two weeks,” he said. “The estate is located right in the village of Killaloe. It is about a twominute walk to the river and you’d would certainly be in the middle of the village after a five-minute walk. This really is a unique opportunity for someone. “The notion of owning an entire housing estate of houses in a location like Killaloe for this price really is something that has captured people’s imaginations.” All development contributions have been paid on the estate and phase one works also have access to mains services, which would facilitate a quick completion for that section of the project.

MORE Travellers live in Ennis than any other town in Munster, while the county capital ranks as third nationally among towns when it comes to being home to members of the Travelling community.

These are just two statistics in the seventh bulletin report from the 2011 National Census of Population entitled ‘Religion, Ethnicity and Irish Travellers – Ethnic and Cultural Background in Ireland’ that presents a profile of the various religions in Ireland along with more detailed results on ethnicity and Irish Travellers.

The report, which was published on Thursday last, shows that there are now 533 Travellers living in Ennis – the highest number of any town in the province and third in Ireland behind Tuam which is home to 669 Travellers and Navan which has a Traveller population of 625.

Irish Traveller households have a significantly lower home ownership rate than the general population with one in five (20.2 per cent) households owning their home compared with 69.7 per cent for the gen- eral population.

The average number of rooms in Irish Traveller households was 4.3, compared with an average of 5.5 rooms for all private households in 2011.

Almost one in three Traveller households (30.3 per cent) with a total of 886 persons who were living in mobile or temporary accommodation had no sewerage facilities in 2011.

As a whole, the county has a Traveller population of 855. A breakdown of these census returns show that there are 203 private households among the county’s Traveller population, while there are 789 permanent housing units and 23 temporary housing units in the county.

The census returns show that there are many ethnic groups living in the county, which is evidence of the way a multicultural society has developed in Clare over the past number of decades.

There are 1, 332 people in the county that the Central Statistics Office have classified as being of an African/Black background, 1, 267 of a Chinese/Asian background, 1,025 of a mixed background and 9, 574 of a non-Irish white background.

THE number of flights coming into Shannon Airport continues to drop, despite a general turnaround in the fortunes of Irish airports. According to new figures released by the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), an average of just 55 commercial daily flight movements took place at Shannon Airport during the month of Septem- ber. This figure represents a reduction of 7.3 per cent on the same month in 2011. This comes in the context of a mini-revival in the airport sector in Ireland generally in recent months, with both Dublin and Cork airports showing positive figures in the late summer and early autumn. Trends nationally over the last three months have shown a dramatic turnaround, with Dublin Airport largely responsible for this. Indeed, figures for Dublin Airport in September show a 5.5 per cent increase compared to the same month in 2011. Cork Airport has also recorded some gains in recent months, while Shannon Airport has recorded ongoing reductions every month this year. While the IAA figures represent the number of flights coming through Shannon Airport and not the number of passengers, it is not good news for the Clare airport, especially with Knock Airport moving closer to passing it out as Ireland’s third biggest airport. The Mayo airport has opened a number of new routes in recent months, including regular flights to Barcelona, Frankfurt, Milan and Paris. The numbers travelling through Knock Airport grew by more than 10 per cent last year to around 700,000 people. While the exact timetable for the decoupling of Shannon Airport from the Dublin Airport Authority has not been finalised, it is now a possibility that Shannon Airport may begin its time as a standalone airport as Ireland’s fourth most used airport, and not its third.

THE Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton (Lab) was in Ennis on Friday to see the formation of a new organisation that will give a voice to those in receipt of social protection payments.

The Labour Minister even addressed the inaugural meeting of the Alliance of Social Protection Recipients at the Temple Gate Hotel.

The Alliance was formed to give “a voice and a platform to people in Clare who avail of social protection payments and services.”

However, the organisation formed in Clare has ambitions far beyond the county boundaries.

The new Alliance asked the minister to set up consultative groups in each region that will have more than 60 per cent of its membership made up of welfare recipients. Supported by Citizens Information Centres, these groups should meet quarterly and report directly in October to the Minister on their findings, the group maintans.

There are over 10,000 people on the live register in Clare and thousands more on 50 different types of welfare payments across a wide spectrum from children’s allowance to the old age pension.

Dermot Hayes, Chair of the Alliance of Social Protection Recipients, said that many of the rates have been cut in the last four years for vari- ous reasons or the rules have been changed for qualification.

“Welfare recipients have come under a harsh spot light in the last few years. One of the solutions to the big crisis proposed by various wellheeled pundits in the media is that the state pays far too much in welfare,” he said.

As an example, he referred to the former head of the University of Limerick Dr Edward Walsh whose various radio interviews suggest that welfare in Ireland is too generous. “Dr Walsh should remember that his retirement salary is generous and supported by the tax payer,” added Dermot Hayes.

“Fuel and food increases of 7 per cent are causing great hardship and should be a stark warming to Government. We will have to re-examine the tax shelters that have developed over the last 15 years that allow the very wealthy to pay only nominal tax while enjoying the fruits of government spending on roads, water and other services,” he said.