The Clare People Archive

LAHINCH lifeboat co-ordinator Tomsie O’Sullivan has denied that his volunteers were hampered in their efforts to rescue drowning vic- tim, Fiona Ring at the Clare resort last Tuesday.

The 39-year-old mother, who was a native of Broadford, died after get-

ting into difficulty while surfing with her husband and nine-year old son. Mr O’Sullivan said he was aware of widespread rumours that some- one had left equipment blocking the boathouse doors and the slipway. ‘That is not the case. Our biggest problem was to keep onlookers away from the slipway and to keep the way clear of cars for the boat to get

through.”

He agreed however that three peo- ple were enlisted to help lift the se- curity barrier protecting equipment and materials being used in the con- struction of the lifeguard station.

“The barrier didn’t obstruct us but to make it safer for the Doolin boat, we moved the barrier by sliding it over a couple of feet,” he said.

He got the call-out from Valentia at 9.30pm but was first asked by them to go to the beach to establish if the emergency was genuine.

“Doolin rescue had already been alerted and were on stand-by to launch once we had established it was a genuine call,” he said.

PRESSURE continues to mount on Ennis Town Council to solve parking difficulties caused by ongoing con- struction work in the Parnell Street car park.

Traders and taxi drivers operating in the area say that the reduction in car-parking space brought about as a result of the works is contributing to a gradual but noticeable decline in business activity.

Figures put forward be representa- tives of the Parnell Street Trader’s association at the July meeting of Ennis Town Council suggested that as many as 13 businesses have closed in recent months.

The Office of Public Works (OPW) commenced work on the upper section of the Ennis Flood Relief Scheme two months ago.

The main works include the con- struction of new river walls and three dedicated surface water pumping stations at Island car park, Parnell Street car park and Mill Road

Brendan Rochford owner of Roch- ford’s pharmacy located on Parnell Street, said the loss of 26 parking spaces is having a major impact on the area.

He said, “The work that is being done is needed and 1s definitely wel- come but there is no doubt that it has created definate obstacles for busi- eas

“If the Council were able to provide alternative areas for parking within the town for staff then that would free up quite a lot of space for cus- events) ace

John Dillane, owner of Banner Motor Factors said, ““We are not the town planners. The responsibility

for solving ongoing problems with parking in Ennis should not lie solely 21 eb eae

He added, “I know they are talk- ing about freeing up the top level of car park in Dunnes, but how is that meant to help customers who are shopping in Parnell Street?”

Taxi driver Martin White said that further meetings are being sought with the council.

Council officials recently ruled out the prospect of temporarily relocat- ing the taxi rank in Parnell street to another site in Ennis.

The council has however agreed to open 30 parking spaces in Waterpark house on Saturdays.

Meanwhile, planning restrictions mean it is unlikely that the former site of Western Garages on the Mill road would be made available for parking.

THE newly established Miultown Malbay Farmers’ Market is looking for a new venue.

The market, which began in June, is having trouble sustaining operations in it’s current location and 1s appeal- ing for any local group of business

people who may have a suitable loca- tion to get in contact.

“We are operating in the Miltown Business Centre at the moment and we are having a lot of problems with itin terms of accessibility,’ said mar- ket secretary Kate Harrin.

“The market is going well and we are really appealing to anyone who

might have a suitable venue to let us know.

“If there was any suitable outdoor space, possibly with access to elec- tricity, it would be ideal.”

The market takes place on Friday evenings and has created a lot of lo- cal interest despite the difficulty in finding a suitable location.

A RESCUE operation was launched after a man got into difficulty while snorkeling in Kilkee on Saturday.

The man, in his mid 20s and from Limerick, suffered a bruise to his forehead and cut to his nose after he appeared to misjudge the depth of the water and hit the rocks.

A rescue operation, involving Kil- kee Marine Rescue, Shannon coast- guard helicopter, ambulance services and local gardai, was sprung into ac-

tion and the man was flown to Cork University Hospital.

Manuel Di Lucia of Kilkee Ma- rine Rescue said it was the first time a helicopter landed on the Pollock Holes.

‘Because of the nature of his inju- ries, we felt it was not a good idea to have him moved by ambulance,” said Mr Di Lucia.

Initial fears were that the man had sustained a spinal injury, but this was not so and he was later discharged from hospital.

A NATIONAL funding project, which is expected to be scrapped, could spell bad news for the pro- posed arts centre in Shannon.

The provision of an arts centre in the town has been on the cards for several years. However, it will be de- pendent on funding.

According to the mayor of Shan- non, Councillor Gerry Flynn (Ind), the “Gateway Innovation Fund’ is to

come to an end.

The fund was put in place to facili- tate regional community initiatives and was to pump €3 million into projects across the country between now and 2010.

It was hoped that money would be funded for the Shannon arts centre under this initiative.

Cllr Flynn said he was in receipt of a report that suggested the scheme was going to be scrapped.

“T think it spells alarm bells for us.

We were hoping for funding under that,” said Cllr Flynn.

He said the centre ties in with the master plan for Shannon and given the economic downturn, he had fears for the overall project.

“It was an area of funding that put forward the idea of regional and bal- anced initiatives. For TC2 and TC3 (the master plan for Shannon), there is every chance the developers we have on standby might decide not to develop. It cuts down our options,”

he said.

However, Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Ind) pointed out that while it was 1m- portant for the arts centre to be built, there were other potential sources of funding. “It is going to challenge us. It was a potential source of revenue, but not the only source of revenue,” she said.

Sixmilebridge-based Cllr John Crowe said the revelation was a “bombshell”, given that so much work had been put into the centre.

A RESIDENT in Shannon is oppos- ing plans to demolish a local com- munity hall. People living in the Drumgeely area of the town want to see their local hall, Park Hall, demolished and another one built to replace it.

They say that the hall has become derelict and has become a haven for anti-social behaviour in its existing State.

The hall has not been used for a considerable length of time and they say that it is of no benefit to any- body.

However, resident Terry Kelly, who has lived in Corrib Drive for more

than 20 years, is opposed to this and wants the existing hall redeveloped.

“It doesn’t make sense to me to have it demolished and to have noth- ing put in its place. My intention is to fight for something in this area,” he said.

“Corrib Drive would be one of the early areas in Shannon. To me there is a greater need now for community development as people are getting old and can’t travel too far from their homes,” he added.

Fine Gael Town Councillor Sean McLoughlin raised a query on the matter at a meeting of the Shannon electoral area committee last month.

“It is an anti-social attraction. If it is derelict, it should be knocked and

identify a more suitable site for a community hall for meeting rooms. It is needed. There is no point in hav- ing it there if it is beyond repair,” he said, at the time.

He was told, in a written response from Senior Executive Officer Michael McNamara, that several years ago, Shannon Development had agreed arrangements for the lease of the hall to Shannon Youth Service Sonia

‘The council has had no input into the operation of the facility since the transfer of the town and does not re- ceive a rent in relation to the prop- erty,’ he said.

He pointed out the council will meet with representatives of the

committee responsible for the hall, “to ascertain current status and seek to address any relevant issues.”

Cllr McLoughlin told

SCENIC trips around the county were among the highlights for young- sters attending the summer camps in Shannon over the past few weeks.

Organised by the youth office in the town, the camps catered for those be- tween the ages of nine and 21, over a three-week period.

During the first week, those aged between nine and 13 attended. The highlights of the week were trips to Ailwee Cave and the Bird of Prey So iiKem to ter

Among the other events included in that summer camp were quasar, bowling, soccer, swimming and sto-

ry-telling.

The second week of the summer camp was for youth club members from Drumgeely and Skyview, along with those from Knocklisheen cen- tre. This camp ran over three days and included a day at Clare Leisure World and a day trip to Killary Ad- venture Centre in County Galway.

The third week was dedicated to the members of the Kick Back Café in Shannon. Geared to those aged between 16 and 21, the camp ran four days of events. A youth evaluation forum was organised, along with a quiz and pizza night, a day trip to La- hinch beach and a free cinema night in Ennis.

The group evaluation will be ad- dressed again in August when the CHIC RAI U IKE

The group has come up with new ideas on how the café can be run more efficiently over the coming months and these will be put to the test over the winter months.

Shannon Youth worker Cathal Dil- lon paid tribute to the work of the volunteers during the busy summer camp season.

“The three weeks of camps were tough going for the both the workers and the volunteers who I must give great credit to. In all, 10 young adults aged 17 and over trained to become summer camp volunteers in July.

They were involved in the hands- on preparation and planning for the camp days, but also helped to run the events and activities organised each day and supervise the young people throughout the camps,” he said.

“It was a gamble this year splitting up the camps to allow for all age groups and unfortunately this proba- bly led to the drop in numbers for the 9 to 13 year old camp, but the qual- ity of the work that took place dur- ing the camps and the enjoyment that the groups seemed to take from the camps was even greater than previ- ous years. Overall, I think that it was a great success” said Shannon youth worker, Pat Kerr.

SUSU Srteclmco im elle icsucwullempbems bletece ratty has raised money for Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children in Crum- lin. More than 100 people took part in the event earlier this month and in the process raised almost €2,500. The event was organised by Sixmi- lebridge brother and sister Bridget and Gerry O’Halloran, who were delighted with the turnout. The ma-

jority of the participants ran the 10k, while others walked it, during what was a family fun day.

Bridget explained her reasons for organising the event; “I fundraised for Crumlin for the New York mara- thon last year and work in the leisure centre in Bunratty. A lot of people have connections with Crumlin, while there had never been a road race in Bunratty before,” she said.

Bridget works as a fitness instructor

and to say that she is a sporting fa- natic would be putting it mildly. She plays soccer with Newtown in Shan- non and camogie with Sixmuilebri- dge, while she also took up running last year. She is currently in training for a triathlon in Chicago on August 24. This will consist of a 1,500 metre swim, 40k cycle and 10k walk.

She had organised several fund- raising events for Chicago and over the coming weeks will continue to

encourage people to help with her 8 Ce ae

“I will be fundraising coming up to it and hoping that everyone will get involved,” she said.

Anyone interested in helping Bridg- et with her fundraising should phone her on 087 2282461.

CLARECASTLE woman bBreige Scanlan is getting into shape as she prepares for the New York City Mar- athon.

61-year-old Breige will run 26 miles through the streets of New York in November.

She is taking on the gruelling chal- lenge to raise money for Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin.

In the meantime, Breige has em- barked on a strict training regime.

Breige explained, “I wanted to do something and I thought running a marathon would be a lovely way to start my sixties. I’m really starting to think seriously about it now. I go for arun in Raheen Woods three times a week and every day I do a jog from

Clarecastle to the roundabout down by the Clare Inn”.

Unsurprisingly, Breige believes in the importance of a healthy lifestyle. She worked in health care for over 35 years, first as a registered gener- al nurse and then as a public health TOS aSoR

She puts her own high fitness levels down to Chi Running, a technique that stimulates immense mental focus to combat the wear and tear caused by running.

Breige’s life changed dramatically when, in 1979, she moved to Bang- ladesh to work with the aid agency Sonteoue

It was there, in the slums and vil- lages, working with the sick and the poor that Breige first became aware of the healing potential of the body.

“IT was there for two years and it was where I first came in contact with natural healing. Here there was all these people who were very sick and who didn’t have access to differ- ent medicines but were still surviv- ing’. She adds, “I really believe that people need to be more committed to staying healthy. People should have a greater reasonability for looking after themselves. We can’t be relying on the HSE and all these big institu- tions or taking injections for every- thing. Its down to the individual.”

In 1985 Breige moved to New York where she lived for 20 years. She is familiar with the sights and sounds of the Big Apple and her training regime was based around one of the city’s most famous landmarks.

“Ttis a totally different place. I used

to do my training in Central Park. A circle of that 1s six miles and I con- vinced myself that if I could do three of them, I could definitely do a mara- ste) s a

Breige returned to live in Ireland in 2005. She now practices reflexology at her home in Clarecastle. Refelxol- ogy is a gentle preventative health care measure that relies on the body’s own healing ability.

Before hitting New York Breige must raise €5,000. In order reach that goal, Breige is offering reflexol- ogy sessions in return for donations. For further information contact Breige at 065 6847255.

ENNIS man Rob Kiely has the hon- our of leading his country at the World Ultimate and Guts Champion- ship (WUGC) in Canada in August.

Rob has been chosen as one of Ire- land’s four captains for the event, the world cup of Frisbee throwing.

More than 100 teams from 30 coun- tries will compete for the title from August 2 to 9.

Ireland will be represented by two teams in the Open and Women’s categories, at the championships or- ganised by the World Flying Disk Association (WFDA). Rob ts a sea-

soned ultimate Frisbee international, having represented his country on four occasions. Before departing for Vancouver, Rob said the memories of one of Ireland’s greatest sporting achievements fired his ambition to represent his country.

“Having the opportunity to repre- sent Ireland is something I’ve wanted to do since I was a young lad watch- ing Italia ‘90 on the big screen in the Roslevan,’ said Rob.

The Ennis native also hopes, that just like Jack Charlton’s team, Ireland can again cause a few upsets. “I’ve been lucky enough to be involved in four national squads up to now, and

as one of this year’s captains, Ill be looking to get the most out of myself and our squad to bring Ireland to new heights at the world level, and take a scalp or two along the way.

“I’m particularly looking forward to the challenge of facing Switzer- land again, and hopefully this time coming out on top.”

Both Irish teams have completed an intensive training programme over the past six months, compris- ing of fitness, skill-based and set piece training. The teams have both competed in a number of prepara- tion events. At a recent tournament in Amsterdam, featuring the best

teams in Europe, the Irish Women’s team achieved runners-up placings, after the first final appearance for an Irish Women’s Team. The Open team faced a number of European teams at an event in Berlin and achieved im- pressive victories over Germany and Holland.

The Open team is seeded 10th of a division of 19 teams, and will travel to Vancouver full of confidence fol- lowing strong performances in the lead-up to the competition.

The Irish women are seeded 12th of 15 and are fired up to make an im- pression on only their second world championship.