News

By Nicola Corless FARMERS are calling on the OPW and Galway County Council to clear drainage channels leading from Kiltartan to the sea at Kinvara, as high water levels have left hundreds of acres of land flooded. According to Councillor Gerry Finnerty, “There are a number of houses and a number of farm sheds under threat”. “In the Tarmon, Cahermore, Ballylee, Peterswell, Ballinastague and Coole areas, there is very, very high ground water levels,” he explained. “Anywhere the small schemes have been done, like in Shanaglish, and with the clearing of the river in Gort, things have improved. They are very small schemes but they have been very effective. When you see the bigger picture though, when the water is going down from Gort to Kiltartan, acres and acres of land has been flooded in Kiltartan and Cahermore. The water is blocking the road at Cahermore and Ballinastague and that is only three miles as the crow flies from the …

THE status of  Ennis hospital is back in the public domain following a statement from a senior HSE figure about the “awful” experience of patients waiting for long periods in the emergency department at University Hospital Limerick (UHL). Twenty-four hour emergency department services were reduced to 12 hours at Ennis Hospital in April 2009, following reconfiguration of services in local acute hospitals. Deputy Joe Carey has pledged to request Health Minister James Reilly to commission an independent review of acute hospital services following the revelation that the Mid-West is the only region in the country without at least two fully functioning 24-hour emergency departments. The Mid-West currently has one model four hospital, a university teaching hospital with a high-level intensive care unit, at UHL; three model two hospitals in Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s, Limerick, where selected medical in-patient, medical assessment and a local injuries unit are provided; as well as Croom Hospital and University Maternity Hospital, Limerick. However, it …

By Tim Healy MORE than 100 members of the  pension scheme of industrial diamond manufacturers, Element Six have lost a Commercial Court action against their trustees over the winding up of the fund. Mr Justice Peter Charleton this week  ruled the trustees of the pension scheme of the Shannon comnpany had acted reasonably and in the interests of the scheme members as a whole when they agreed in November 20011 to accept an offer to wind up the fund on the basis of a contribution of €37.1m from the company. The members sued the six trustees claiming breach of trust and conflict of interest in accepting the offer and said they should instead have demanded the company make a €129.2m contribution to make up the deficit in the scheme.   The claims were denied. The trustees, comprising three management nominees and three worker nominees,  accepted the €37m offer in a 3-3 vote in which the management nominee exercised his casting vote. …

ENNIS has so far escaped the brunt of Storm Brigid, however town manager Ger Dollard has warned, “the danger has not passed.” He outlined that river levels are in the “red zone”, with a high risk of flooding still in place. And he urged members of the public to remain vigilant as stormy weather conditions are expected to continue. The town manager was speaking at a meeting of Ennis Town Council this week where he pointed out that the town’s flood defences have been working well. “Despite the very heavy rain and high tide Ennis has performed exceptionally well over the last number of weeks,” he said. He outlined that there have been major improvements to flood defences in recent years with a number of works carried out at various locations including the Gort Road Flood Relief Scheme. While work on phase 2 of the Ennis Flood Relief Scheme continues. And he stated that since the flooding of 2009 the …

SENATOR  Martin Conway, on this Wednesday, welcomed comments from the office of the EU’s Regional Policy Commissioner, Johannes Hahn, that Ireland can still apply for assistance from the EU Solidarity Fund. “I am greatly encouraged that the Regional Policy Commissioner has advised that Ireland can apply for funding within the deadline provided if it informs the Commission that additional information will be submitted at a later point. “The EU Solidarity Fund was created in response to severe flooding in Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic and France during the summer of 2002. “It is possible to access this funding if the majority of a population of a region are hit by serious and lasting effects in living conditions and stability, a definition which could certainly be applied to the destruction which has been wrought on coastal communities and low lying areas around the country,” the Fine Gael senator stated. He urged the Government to push ahead with an application to this …

CLARE TD, Timmy Dooley, has expressed outrage at the lack of progress being made on A&E waiting times at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Limerick, which currently has the highest number of patients waiting on trolleys in the country. “I am listening to harrowing stories week in week out from Clare patients who have been deeply traumatised by prolonged waiting times in cramped and overcrowded conditions at the acute hospital with no end in sight. We are now told that it will be 2016 before the new A&E facility will be opened to the public. “The facilities are poor but it should be possible with appropriate funding to increase the throughput of A&E, without this increase in funding the new facility to be opened in 2016 will not resolve the crisis. “The CEO and staff are doing an outstanding job given the resources available to them and if it wasn’t for their dedication and hard work, the situation would be …

THE  launch this Wednesday of the Aer Lingus daily year-round service from Shannon to Boston is a major boost for the West of Ireland. The service is one of the key aspects of Aer Lingus’ renewed commitment to the independent Shannon Airport this year, with the airline also set to operate a six-times weekly, year-round JFK New York service from March 30th. In addition, Aer Lingus will also commence a new Malaga service at the end of April and, through its partner Aer Arann, under the Aer Lingus Regional service will also operate a new Bristol route this summer as well as almost double capacity on Manchester and Birmingham services. The increased transatlantic services will build on the strong momentum achieved last year when passenger numbers on US services at Shannon, in the airport’s first year as an independent entity, grew steadily, with the latter half of the year showing a 22% rise on the same period in 2012. The …

THE Irish Red Cross – Dublin has launched the Ireland Floods Appeal in aid of families affected by the flooding across much of the country, including Clare. As with previous national flood appeals, The Irish Red Cross will work closely with the Community Welfare Services of the Department of Social Protection to identify those most in need of assistance. As well as Clare, other areas badly hit include Cork, Limerick, Louth, Waterford and Wexford. Anyone in the County of Clare in the affected areas that wish to apply for assistance from the Irish Red Cross should first contact The Irish Red Cross – Clare Area, James Lafferty (086-3659708) or email laffertyjames19582013@gmail.com; and in turn should contact their local Community Welfare Office The Irish Red Cross – Clare Area will be appealing for funds over the next few weeks through a series of events.