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THE frustration of residents in Corrovorrin who are awaiting the introduction of much sought after traffic calming measures has been highlighted at a meeting of Ennis councillors. Speaking at a meeting of the Ennis Municipal District, Councillor Johnny Flynn commented, “The residents of Corrovorrin are getting very frustrated, they are wondering when the work will be done.” He said that locals had hoped to see works progressing over the summer months, when schools are closed, however the works are now not likely to go ahead until the autumn or winter. The councillor raised the issue as he proposed that in addition to the proposals for Corrovorrin, that the council look at providing additional traffic calming measures east and west of the railway bridge. He pointed out that there are 15,000 vehicles a day on the main Tulla Road, suggesting pedestrian crossings should be introduced in locations such as the Lifford Road and New Road junctions. He said there is an …

A DECISION to close mental health supported accommodation in Ennistymon has been confirmed by the HSE, writes Jessica Quinn. The closure of Prague House has been criticised by trade union SIPTU, with union representative Mark Quinn calling for the decision to be reversed. According to the HSE the closure of the facility is due to decreasing demand for the service in recent years and the need for “significant” repair and refurbishment of the building. Most recently there was one resident of Prague House who has now been moved to alternative accommodation in the county. Mr Quinn has insisted that the building should be modernised to allow the service to continue operating in Ennistymon. He also expressed concerns that anybody needing the accommodation service in the future will have to travel outside of North Clare. He said two union members working in the facility were informed last week that their jobs would be moving to another location in Ennis, and there …

COMMUNITIES around North and East Clare have come together to unite a man from Carron with a new puppy after the passing of his wife, Catherine, and the death of his dog in quick succession, writes Conor Clohessy. Paddy Hynes (93) is well-known in the region for his storytelling, having honed his craft at the Teach Ceoil in Corofin and in Ennistymon. Burren Riding Club was instrumental in finding the pet for Paddy, asking their members for any help they could get – and found themselves very fortunate. Margaret Corry, secretary at the club, said: “One of our members, Hazel Frawley, answered the call, saying she had just been to the vet with her own dog because of a phantom pregnancy, but promised to keep a look out. “A few weeks later, she called me and said that the phantom pregnancy was a real pregnancy, and she now had three pups! When I dropped the pup to Paddy at his …

A MILTOWN Malbay man has been found not guilty of dangerous driving causing the death of his friend in a single-vehicle collision three years ago. The jury returned the verdict at Ennis Circuit Court at the conclusion of the trial of Tadgh O’Neill. Mr O’Neill (22), with an address at Poulawilliam, Miltown Malbay, and who previously lived and worked in Glasgow and London, pleaded not guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of Inagh man Alan Rynne (30) at Caherogan, near Miltown Malbay on June 18, 2018. At the outset of the trial, Mr O’Neill pleaded guilty to driving while in excess of the legal alcohol limit and driving without insurance. He is due to be sentenced for those offences on July 22. Mr Rynne was a back seat passenger in a Volkswagen Golf driven by Mr O’Neill when it crashed into a bridge on a country road in the early hours of June 18, 2018. Members of Mr O’Neill’s …

A WELL known Ennis estate agent has made his own move to raise much needed funds for charity. Last Saturday Diarmuid McMahon, of Sherry Fitzgerald McMahon, took the plunge and swam from Clare to Galway, across Galway Bay, in aid of Cancer Care West. The former chair of Ennis Chamber has raised almost €2,500 for the charity, with funds still being donated. Speaking to the Champion, Diarmuid described the response to the fundraiser as “phenomenal” and he has expressed his appreciation to everybody who has shown support. His solo togs swim was part of this year’s virtual Frances Thornton Galway Bay Swim which over the years has raised more than €900,000 for Cancer Care West. The funds raised are used to help meet the costs of residential and cancer support services, which are provided free of charge to cancer patients and their families. This is the 16th year of the annual swim, which would normally see 150 people cross the …

Eoin Brennan previews a massive game for the Clare hurlers THE main thread to emerge since Monday’s qualifier draw is whether Clare’s superior experience of being their fourth championship tie will be more beneficial than Cork’s freshness, having only played Limerick so far. On a purely aesthetic level, while a run to the All-Ireland Semi-Finals would mean four consecutive weekends of action, the buoyancy favour should be strong for Clare this weekend, albeit that the scorching conditions in their rousing victory over Wexford last Saturday will have taken its toll on the squad. Still, Brian Lohan is realistic about the difficult backdoor route ahead as well as the fact that after building up an 11 point cushion in the first 20 minutes last Saturday, his side weren’t going to be able to hold the whip hand for the full 70 minutes. “It was a very good start by us, we got a couple of points up and we utilised every …

Finn McGeever tells Dan Danaher that the local support will give him a real boost in the pool in Tokyo A FORMER student of St Anne’s Community College has described securing a place on the Irish Olympic swimming relay team as a “dream come true”. Finn McGeever, (20) will be making history in Toyko, as he is part of an Irish swimming relay team, that will compete in the 200 metre relay event for the first time in 49 years. Securing nine Olympic places means this is the largest Irish swimming team after three qualified for the previous games. The Irish men’s four by 200 metre freestyle relay heats takes place on Tuesday, July 27, between 7 and 9.30pm Tokyo time, which is eight hours ahead of Ireland. Finn, a second year student at University of Limerick (UL) is the youngest son of Roisín and Charlie and a past pupil of Ballina National School and St Anne’s Community College. In …

Ivan Smyth spoke to senior camogie manager Ger O’Connell ahead of the crunch game against Galway WITH four teams in Clare’s group and only the top two progressing and a gallant defeat to Kilkenny already in the records, Banner manager Ger O’Connell understands the importance of this Saturday’s game against Galway. With Cathal Murray’s side easily dispatching the challenge of Westmeath, the pressure is on Clare to secure a result in order to keep their hopes of progression alive heading in to the final round of fixtures. “It’s do or die in the next game (against Galway). Our season is on the line. We have nothing to lose going into it. It will be a fierce challenge but it’s one we have to face head on.” “It’s hard to explain the effort the players are putting in. I know with the league people may have looked at our results and thought Kilkenny would win easily. “Those people don’t know Clare …