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Gardaí are investigating the circumstances of a fire that destroyed a caravan near Doora on Sunday evening. Emergency services were alerted after at around 4.15pm when it was reported that a caravan was on fire at Kilbreckan near Doora and just off the M18 motorway close to junction 12. Units of the Clare County Fire and Rescue Service from Ennis and Shannon stations responded to the call along with Gardaí. On arrival at the scene, fire crews found the caravan was well alight. The fire was brought under control however the caravan was completely destroyed. There was no one injured in the incident. Gardaí are now investigating the cause of the fire. A Garda spokesperson confirmed: “Gardaí and fire services attended a fire in Ennis earlier this afternoon. No injuries have been reported. Enquiries are ongoing.”

A KILLALOE company has scored on the double by winning a Lean Leadership Award that brought extra cash of up to €150,000 into the company over an 18-month period. Thinking Toys was recently presented with an Award of Achievement in recognition of lean leadership at the 2022 Lean Business Ireland Awards. Implementing transformation change with stock management through a new Lean Management Programme to deal with an overstocking issue helped the company reduce their suppliers to 130 and product lines to 4,000, which cut the value of stock it held by 35%. Thinking Toys had grown from employing two people with ten suppliers and 200 products in 2004 to nine employees with 160 suppliers in 2020 across the world and 5,500 product lines. The family business was set up by Michael and Áine Conacur, inspired by their eldest child Ailis, who has Sturge Weber Syndrome and who had major brain surgery when she was two. The frustration and difficulties the …

FURTHER public submissions are to be accepted on a major private housing estate proposed for Tulla, now that the developers have provided the Council with extra information.  In response to planners concerns, Wiskin Property Developments submitted Further Information (FI) earlier this month. Planners have decided that the the nine points of information provided, as well as updated drawing and reports, constitute “Significant Further Information”. That means that more public submissions will be accepted for a five-week period. The Council has given January 14 as the updated decision date on the estate plans.  Plans for 60 homes on a site at Loughaun South were submitted in August of this year. After an initial assessment, and four submissions from nearby residents, planners questioned several aspects of the proposals. Residents highlighted the rapid increase in housing development in Tulla, and raised concerns over an increase in traffic, parking and road safety.  Planners’ questions, in an FI request, centred on the impact on a …

This might just have been my busiest year yet of travel, photoshoots and meet-ups with friends and while I’ve turned 13, I promise I am not a difficult teenager! Well, that’s another year over and it was special for me. Yes, I’m officially a teenager, having celebrated my 13th birthday in May. I don’t feel any different. I’m still busier than ever visiting my favourite places and modelling my lovely outfits as befits a superstar. I seem to have packed so much into this year that I get dizzy even thinking about it. My first major photo shoot was for Valentine’s Day. I’d just got a beautiful dress from my favourite couturiers, AG Dog Fashion and we wondered how best to show it off when we spied a stall in Galway, The Pine Rack, selling home made boxes; not much more than a week later, I had a lovely kissing booth with heart cutouts, painted and all. We quickly decided …

IT took Minister of State with special responsibility for the Irish Coast Guard Hildegarde Naughton almost 11 months to meet some volunteers in the Doolin Coast Guard Unit (DCGU) following a public commitment. Minister Naughton visited Doolin Coast Guard Unit in County Clare on October 27 this year to meet with the local volunteer interim team and hear first-hand about their life saving work. However, her visit, attended by only one public representative, Councillor Joe Garrihy, has angered former volunteers after she failed to make any contact with the members who were controversially sacked after the unit was stood down from operations and training activities on November 2, 2021. There were 12 volunteers in DCGU when the unit was disbanded. Former volunteer Robert McCavery said members feel let down by politicians. “Minister Hildegarde Naughton said on Clare FM last year she would visit the unit but she has never met us.” In a statement issued by the Department of Transport …

ENNIS students are urging the public to help them become a ‘Secret Santa’ to those most in need in Clare. Transition Year students at Ennis Community College and Gaelcholáiste an Chláir joined forces with the St Vincent de Paul and next week they will be taking over the Vincent’s Charity Shop in Ennis. This is just one of a variety of actions the students are taking to support the St Vincent de Paul, with a clothing and food drive and a no-uniform day also planned. On Thursday, December 1 the Ennis teenagers will take on the entire running of the charity shop from 9am until 9pm, doing everything from manning the tills to managing the floor. And for those hoping to pick up some bargains ahead of the festive season, there are plans for a flash sale with up to 50% off items teacher Martina McNamara reveals. Ms McNamara explains that the theme of this year’s annual fundraising campaign by …

THE average price sought for rental properties in Clare increased by 9% between the third quarter of last year and the third quarter of this year, according to Daft.ie. It stated that the average rent sought in Clare now stands at €1,167 per month. The average price sought for a one-bedroom apartment is now €788, while at the other end of the scale an average five-bedroom house now costs €1,395 per month. It is cheaper to buy than rent across all house sizes, with the difference being particularly noticeable for smaller properties. For instance the average rent on a one-bedroom apartment is more than twice the €378 it would cost to pay a mortgate on a similar property. Rents across Clare increased by just under 2% compared to the second quarter, while they are now 117% above what was being sought at the lowest point of the recession. Writing in the Daft.ie rental report, Trinity College economist Ronan Lyons said …

A FORMER Doolin Coast Guard volunteer has asked how he was “suddenly viewed as a danger to himself and others in the unit after 28 years of service”. Myles Duffy would like an apology for a statement made by Coast Guard director, Eugene Clonan at the Joint Committee on Transport and Communications on Thursday, November 18, 2021. Mr Clonan stated, “Doolin Unit has been having problems for years. Six members resigned and there are 12 members left. Based on what I have been told, my belief is the interaction between the team is not safe. “The 12 members are not safe to go out because of the issues that have arisen as a result of the internal conflict. I will not have people going out to sea or climbing cliffs if I do not have confidence in them doing so safely. “I am protecting myself and I am protecting them, but mainly them. We had the loss of Caitriona Lucas. …