BASED on the Sligo experience, Ennis Chamber is expecting a major increase in crowds for Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann. Chamber president William Cahir said figures provided by the organisers of the Fleadh in Sligo reveal a major increase in footfall from 900,000 in year one to 1.2 million in the second year. Mr Cahir said there is also evidence of people living abroad travelling in huge numbers to sample the great music and atmosphere at the festival. “If the weather holds up, we would expect much bigger crowds this year, particularly for the main weekend. Some people stayed away last year, due to the inclement weather,” he noted. “The reputation the Fleadh gained from the superb quality of the music in Ennis last year will also attract large crowds,” he added. The office in the Market has confirmed that most of the accommodation providers in the county town are effectively full. Most enquiries for accommodation are for Friday, August 18 …

A COMMUNITY in grief came together at St Senan’s Church in Kilkee to remember the late Karl Haugh, the 25-year-old father-of-one, who died in tragic circumstances at the weekend. “It is a time of great pain, deep anguish, confusion, anger and darkness,” Fr Gerry Kenny said at his funeral mass on Wednesday afternoon, as he recalled the life of this “loveable soul”, whose time was cut so short. In a letter read to the congregation by a relative, Karl’s mother, Bridget, said, “He was our boy, whom we loved so much. For our son to be taken away the way he was taken is the hardest part of all. Our Karl did not deserve this; what child does? When you took our son away from us that terrible night, you took me and his father’s souls with him. “Today was the most horrific day of my and your father’s life, to say our farewell to you, our beloved son Karl. …

A third man has been taken into custody by gardaí investigating the fatal stabbing of 25 year-old Karl Haugh from Kilkee. Mr Haugh, a father of one, sustained fatal stab wounds during an altercation at Marion Estate at approximately 1.15am on Sunday morning. He was removed to University Hospital Limerick where he was pronounced dead. Deputy State Pathologist Dr Michael Curtis has since carried out a post-mortem examination. The man, in is 20s, was arrested in the West Clare area and is detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act at Ennis Garda Station. This brings to three the number of people in custody as part of the investigation. Two others, also in their 20’s, are detained at Kilrush Garda Station. Members of the Clare Divisional Crime Scene Investigation Unit carried out a technical examination of the scene while gardaí have also appointed a Garda Liaison Officer to the Mr Haugh’s family. It has also emerged that Karl Haugh …

Councillor Cathal Crowe may become one of the youngest public representatives to contest the next general election in Clare but he chose an old style Fianna Fáil rally-type event to officially launch his bid on Wednesday afternoon. Standing on an open top trailer surrounded by political posters from the last three local elections, Councillor Crowe also turned back the clock by launching his election campaign outside the home of the last Dáil deputy from South-East Clare, Paddy Brennan. The fact that the Brennans were Free Staters and staunch Cumann na nGaedheal members didn’t deter the 34-year-old from declaring his intention to run in the next general election at Brennan’s Cross in Meelick. The passionate historian recalled that while on the run, the Brennans often took shelter at his grandparents’ house in Woodcock Hill, just three miles from the cross. With former Clare hurler Niall Gilligan providing the warm-up speech, Councillor Crowe then outlined his vision. “For 95 years, this corner …

The Irish Coast Guard and the RNLI have issued a joint appeal this Bank Holiday weekend for people to be vigilant and to take care on the water and along the coastline. It comes as both organisations note that August was the busiest month for coastal recreational incidents last year. Irish lifeboat crews last August alone responded 217 times to emergencies at sea. With the summer holidays in full swing, it has been a busy time for the search and rescue agencies and this Bank Holiday weekend, the two organisations are warning people to be vigilant and take heed of some simple safety advice. While summer air temperatures may be warm, Irish waters rarely exceed 15C, making them cold enough year-round to trigger cold water shock, which causes the instinctive reaction to gasp and swim hard, which can quickly lead to drowning. As part of its drowning prevention campaign, Respect the Water, the RNLI is calling on the public to …

MORE than 15% of Clare’s population are now foreign-born, census statistics show, while more than a quarter of households in the Banner County consist of a single person. Figures show the county had a population of 118,817 on census day and a usually resident population of 116,460. Of the second figure, 98,420 were born in Ireland and 18,040 abroad. This equates to 84.5% born here and 15.5% outside of the country. Apart from those born in Ireland, the next biggest group are people born in the UK, of which there are 7,616 in Clare. There is also a large Polish population (2,684), with 333 people from Lithuania. Another 2,424 come from other EU countries and a further 4,983 people are from non-EU countries. The vast majority of Clare’s population are white, with 99,244 people identified as white Irish, 905 as white Irish Traveller and another 9,432 as other white. A total of 1,653 were identified as Asian or Asian-Irish and …

BEATEN by 24 points on July 2 by Kerry, how do the Clare minor footballers recover from that Munster final hammering? Perhaps the only way is to somehow try to forget about it and apply all of their energy into producing a performance against Dublin on Monday in their All-Ireland quarter-final tie. The game will be played in Portlaoise at 2pm. Clare have no choice really. That’s all they can do and, hopefully, they will at least compete with the Leinster champions, who beat Louth to win the provincial title. Clare selector Eamon Keane says their primary task since the Munster final was to somehow raise the confidence of all involved. The only option available is to play with conviction in an effort to restore pride. “We were well beaten in the Munster final and confidence was down. For a few weeks afterwards we had to build that up and I think we’ve succeeded in doing that. We’ve worked hard …

Creative Ireland is all about you. It’s about how, whether you are young or old, you can benefit from getting more involved in arts, culture and creativity. It’s an ambitious five-year Government strategy that aims to boost wellbeing in schools, homes and communities nationwide. You might remember the huge success of the commemorative programme last year, when thousands of cultural events were held nationwide to remember 1916. We knew that something special was happening through the commemorations; it awoke a great appetite for people to engage with their unique culture at a local and national level. We wanted to build a legacy from that tremendous cultural awakening, and that legacy is Creative Ireland. One of the key aims of Creative Ireland is to ensure that every child in the country will have access to lessons and tuition in art, drama, music or coding over the next five years. Research shows that children who engage in the arts and cultural activity …