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PRESIDENT Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina visited the local branch of the Samaritans on the Kilrush Road in Ennis last week, as it celebrated its 40th anniversary. The Samaritans provides confidential emotional support to people experiencing feelings of distress and despair, including feelings that may lead to suicide. The current local director Margaret McMahon said Gardai had been at the branch well in advance of the visit, and around the Tuesday of the week before the Presidential visit it had been confirmed he would be coming. On the day he presented certificates to two of the longest serving volunteers. “One of them, Teresa, is one of the founding members and has 40 years of service, while another one, Mary, has 39 years,” said Margaret. Speaking about the visit, she said that they had shown him their premises, while they found he was familiar with the charity. “We brought him in and showed him our visitors room, the operations …

RESEARCH involving two Clare natives has provided further insight into how remote working can support balanced regional development and revitalise rural communities.  Among the findings of the third annual National Remote Working Survey is the fact that this county ranks inside the top ten locations for workers who have relocated since the pandemic. Clare was the seventh most popular destination for those relocating. The potential offered by remote working had prompted 4.4% of those relocating to opt for County Clare. Of the survey respondents still considering moving, Clare was the tenth most popular choice.  The study was led by Labasheeda native, Professor Alma McCarthy and Noreen O’Connor at NUI Galway; as well as Quin’s Tomás Ó Síocháin and Deirdre Frost at the Western Development Commission (WDC). The survey gathered responses from more than 8,400 employees, in late April and early May, on their current experience of remote working. While more than half of respondents (58%) had never worked remotely before the …

A PLANNING application for the construction of a new €25 million community hospital in Ennis to replace long stay and short stay beds at St Joseph’s will be lodged in the last week in June, the HSE has confirmed. Responding to Clare Champion queries, the HSE has confirmed it also hopes to host a public consultation event about its plans on June 22. There have been a number of false dawns in relation to this planning application, which was was previously supposed to be lodged last December. If given the green light, the 100-bed community nursing unit will be situated on the grounds of a green field 5.09 acre site adjacent to St Flannan’s College. A design team has completed an outline design phase of the project. The unit will include 88 single and four twin rooms, and four palliative care facilities. The project has already been included for funding in the HSE Capital Programme 2021. An allocation of €1.05 …

Vueling Airlines, the low-cost Spanish airline, will operate a twice weekly service to Paris Orly Airport on Mondays and Fridays starting from September 12. Shannon Group welcomed the announcement of the direct Paris service with fares starting from €30.99 calling it a “further boost to Shannon Airport’s pandemic recovery”. Orly Airport is the nearest airport to the centre of Paris, just 13km from the city of lights. It is the second largest airport in France and provides hub connectivity with onward connections to major European cities and Middle Eastern countries. Commenting on the announcement, Shannon Group CEO, Mary Considine said: “We are delighted to welcome our new carrier Vueling, part of IAG, to Shannon Airport. This service is another major boost for inbound and outbound business and tourism interests in the region. “We have been working closely with Vueling to deliver the service and are looking forward to seeing our passengers jet off to this globally renowned city, steeped in …

THE Mid-West HSE has advertised for two dietitians to support the assessment and treatment of children and young people with eating disorders. Maria Bridgeman, Chief Officer, HSE Mid West Community Healthcare has outlined what supports are available to young people with eating disorders in Clare following a question tabled by Councillor Mary Howard at a recent HSE West Forum meeting. Ms Bridgeman stated the East Clare and West Clare HSE CAMHS Teams offer assessment and interventions to children and adolescents with eating disorders, as well as supports to their parents and carers. Services provided include assessment and family based treatment is line with the National Clinical Programme for Eating Disorders. The HSE also support admission to CAMHS inpatient units if necessary. It provides referral consultations and pre-admission/post discharge support and funds private sessions on an needs basis. The work of Bodywhys a national organisation supporting people affected by eating disorders that operates on a self-referral basis, has also been higlighted. …

AN EXPERT engineer has described the causative link between pyrite and the cracking of affected homes in Clare as “abundantly clear, categoric and incontrovertible”. Simon Beale and Associates sent a detailed report on behalf of Clare County Council to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (DHLGH), last month. The documentation, seen by The Champion runs to over 1,000 pages. It was compiled on foot of queries raised in December by the DHLGH over the original report submitted last July to make the case for Clare’s inclusion on the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme. In his latest report, Mr Beale noted the the Department had “requested that Clare County Council demonstrate the link between the building damage and defective concrete blockwork by showing clear evidence of oxidation of pyrite to form other minerals, the presence of secondary minerals and gypsum production”. As part of the process of responding to the DHLGH, five homes owned by Clare County Council, located …

GRIM predictions of rising sea levels has prompted a renewed call for the relocation of the Clarecastle tidal barrage downstream to safeguard Ennis from “rapid flooding on an unprecedented scale”. Chartered building surveyor Fergus Merriman is concerned about scientific reports predicting sea level changes upwards of 600 mm in just five years and what that will mean for Ennis and other vulnerable Clare areas. Other forecasts indicate the glacier in the in Antarctica is rapidly breaking apart and could raise sea levels by over two or possibly three feet. Even if the lowest predictions of sea level change come to fruition and national and local governments don’t act soon then Ennis would be in trouble, said Mr Merriman. He warned this can’t be addressed by continuing to raise earth dams, which are at risk of “rotational shear” when the weight of water on one side topples the weight of the earth on the other – an issue that led to …

Clare will face Roscommon in the second round of the All Ireland SFC qualifiers. It will be a second meeting of the sides in 2022, after they played out a 0-9 to 0-9 draw in Division Two of the National League in Hyde Park. The game is set to be played in Croke Park next Saturday with throw-in at 3.45. Colm Collins’ side progressed through to this stage after ending their hoodoo against Meath, when downing the Royals 1-11 to 1-9, as late scores from Keelan Sexton and Manus Doherty edged Clare over the line. Roscommon enter the contest having lost just one game all year between league and Championship, that being a Connacht final reversal against Galway. Anthony Cunningham’s side didn’t hit the levels they expected of themselves in Salthill and will be keen to ensure their year doesn’t end in a whimper. This clash will evoke memories of 2016, as Clare beat Roscommon to seal a quarter final …