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HUNDREDS of council homes in this county could be affected by pyrite, it has emerged. At a council briefing for members of the Clare Pyrite Action Group (CPAG) and the Oireachtas, a figure of 350 local authority homes was given. The council has since confirmed the accuracy of this estimate, based on tests conducted to-date. Some believe, however, that even that figure may not paint a true picture of the extent of defective concrete blocks in homes in Clare, and that the actual situation could be worse.  The details have been welcomed by the founder of the CPAG as well as residents of one Ennis housing estate who spoke publicly to The Champion last year about the condition of their homes. Eileen Downes of Oakwood Drive described how she and her neighbours felt ignored for years after first highlighting cracks in their houses.  “We’re looking at our homes getting worse for the last three to five years,” she said. “It’s …

CBS Ennistymon’s historic dual run is set to continue this weekend when the Munster Senior C Post-Primary Schools double champions enter the All-Ireland C series at the penultimate stage, writes Eoin Brennan. Taking on the Ulster champions over the next two Saturday’s, first up for the North Clare school is a football showdown with Donegal’s St Columbia’s Stranorlar who only secured their first ever provincial title on Tuesday evening. This fixture is set for this Saturday, weather permitting. In a dominant display aided greatly by 1-7 from targetman Niall McCormack, the breakthrough champions kept Cavan’s Virginia College at arm’s length throughout to record a 1-13 to 0-06 victory. Seven days later, CBS Ennistymon will take on Antrim’s St Killian’s College in the hurling version, the same day as Harty Cup champions St Joseph’s Tulla commence their Croke Cup campaign with a semi-final clash with roll of honours leaders St Kieran’s College. Despite not reaching the Leinster decider, the Kilkenny superpower …

ANTI-SOCIAL behaviour in parts of Shannon is leading to the “terrorising” of people trying to go about their daily lives, Clare’s Fianna Fáil TD has said. Deputy Cathal Crowe told the quarterly meeting of Clare’s Joint Policing Committee (JPC) that a stronger approach needs to be taken to tackle a raft of incidents in the town. “This is a parental and a policing issue,” he said. “There are kids being dropped off from Sixmilebridge, Quin and from across the region and they think their children are just spending time with their friends. “The truth is that there is terrorising going on in the shopping centre. Last week, a trolley was pushed down two or three flights of stairs and it narrowly missed a pensioner who was out doing the shopping.” Responding to the Fianna Fáil TD’s concerns, Chief Superintendent Seán Colleran said the issue of anti-social behaviour was widespread. “This is not just a concern for Shannon,” he said. “There …

THREE projects in Clare will share a grant of just under €734,000, under the first strand of the 2021 Town and Village Renewal Scheme. Projects in Clonlara, Drumgeely and Mountshannon have been selected in this funding stream, which tackles vacancy and dereliction by bringing landmark town centre buildings back to life for community use. The allocation was welcomed by Clare Fianna Fail TD Cathal Crowe, who said, “This is a significant fund coming into our county which will help rejuvenate the three areas that have been selected. “The biggest single allocation of €454,050 goes to Clonlara for the creation of a plaza area at the village crossroads, as well as the development of a multi-purpose community space at Kiltenanlea Church. “This will hugely transform the village centre and I think the idea of a central plaza is one that could be replicated in years to come in communities the length and breadth of the county. “In Drumgeely in Shannon, €225,000 …

DRUGS with an estimated value of €50,000 have been seized at Shannon Airport with the assistance of detector dog Harley. Revenue officers seized 2.5 kgs of herbal cannabis concealed within metal cans manifested as “Jasmine Tea”. The consignment had originated in the US and was destined for an address in Cork. Separately, at Dublin District Court Revenue officers were granted a three-month cash detention order by Judge John Campbell. This followed the seizure on 18 February 2022 of €10,000 at Dublin Airport. The cash was discovered when, as a result of routine profiling, Revenue officers stopped and searched a passenger prior to boarding a flight to Instanbul, Turkey. The cash is suspected to be the proceeds of, or intended for use in, criminal activity and is detained by Revenue in accordance with proceeds of crime legislation. Investigations into both seizures are ongoing. These seizures are part of Revenue’s ongoing operations targeting organised crime groups and the importation, sale and supply …

PASSENGERS who were on board a Ryanair flight from Shannon have shared details of the terrifying experience they endured on the service to Birmingham. Last Friday was a day to forget for the unfortunate passengers who were flying to the UK city. After boarding their aircraft in stormy conditions, they were then left waiting for hours before the plane finally took off. After going to Birmingham, it was judged that they could not land safely and there was uncertainty for some time as to where they would go instead. Ultimately the flight was redirected to Prestwick outside of Glasgow. After landing there, the passengers were told they had two options, neither appealing. One choice was to take a bus to Birmingham, which could take in the region of eight hours. Their other option was to stay on the aircraft, which was going to take off once again, but they were told there was only a 50-50 chance that it would …

AT STEPHANIE Fitzpatrick’s funeral on Thursday, Father Robert McNamara paid tribute to the warmth of Stephanie’s family, writes Owen Ryan. Fr McNamara addressed a packed church in Lisdoonvarna, with many more listening outside to the homily. “When I was just in my first week here in Lisdoon, Marian asked me to drop in to see Biddy. I arrived, Biddy had the kettle on, and she asked Marian to put out the good jug for the priest. It was far I was reared from jugs! “Anyway, Biddy then produced this wonderful brown bread, for which I later discovered she was famous, and it was in the sharing of that bread that love and warmth and hospitality became really present, and God was there too undercover. “As the philosopher Wittgenstein had written over his doorway: ‘bidden or unbidden, God is present’. “That home of hospitality and love and welcome was the home that Stephanie came from, and it was a home of …

COROFIN Drama Society springs back into action after the pandemic with a performance over three nights of a Harold Pinter play. Betrayal, which is produced by John Clancy, will be presented over three performances in St Patrick’s Hall, Corofin, running on March 2, 3 and 5 from 8pm each evening. Thereafter, the society will take the play on the road to regional drama festivals, as it attempts to qualify for the 2022 All-Ireland Final, which will take place in May in Athlone. “It’s such a good feeling to be back performing in our home community,” comments Rona Lyons, PRO with Corofin Dramatic Society. “Covid really impacted on our ability to do what we love so we are feeling really excited as things open up again.” The society enters into the 2022 Drama Festival Circuit full of confidence, having qualified for the All-Ireland One Act Festival which was hosted by Ennis Players in early December. “That was a great experience,” says …