News

SCHOOLCHILDREN from over 20 Clare national schools have joined a campaign that’s planting more than a million trees in Ireland and Africa this year. In the lead up to Christmas, close to 160 class groups at national schools across the county will hold tree planting ceremonies on school grounds, local parks and public land, and will lend their backing to communities who will be planting tens of thousands of new trees in Uganda, Kenya, Senegal and Malawi before the end of the year. The schools initiative is part of the One Million Trees campaign, which will see Self Help Africa plant over a million trees this year.  The campaign is being coordinated by Clare native Sean McMahon, the former principal of Mullagh National School and a former President of the INTO teachers union. The campaign is being backed by the INTO,  and will see native Irish seedlings being distributed for planting by each participating class group. Workshops, collections and other …

A 78-year-old Clare farmer who won a coveted framed pair of O’Neill’s shorts signed by actor, Paul Mescal has admitted he never watched ‘Normal People’. The TV breakout hit of 2020 made Paul Mescal a global star but west Clare man Noel Ryan admitted, “I didn’t even look at it,” when asked did he see the actor in it. Mr Ryan made his comment after Cooraclare GAA club confirmed that hen had the winning ticket for the signed shorts that were raffled as part of a fundraising drive for the club. He did however say he is “delighted” to have won the shorts and they now have pride of place at his Cooraclare home. The O’Neills shorts contain the dedication penned by Mescal ‘to the Normal People of Cooraclare’. The Kildare man has close family links to the west Clare village and his celebrity status has proven to be a winner for Cooraclare GAA which has raised €10,000 for much-needed …

SHANNONDOC has predicted patient numbers across the Christmas period this year will be double normal operating levels. Looking ahead to the busiest period of the year for the service, which provides non-emergency GP care outside of normal surgery hours, ShannonDoc Chair Dr Ailish Kenny urged the public to be patient as staff try to deal with the huge increase in calls. “We normally deal with about 2,500 patients per week but that will more or less double over Christmas when GP practices will, of course, be closed for public holidays as well as weekends. Over the course of the Christmas and New Year period, we could care for approx 10,000 patients in total. “That’s a huge throughput and a credit to all our staff. Every year the organisation rises to the challenge and our staff have been incredible over the past 20 months with Covid-19, while the public, too, have been understanding and supportive in light of the challenges facing …

ACUTE hospitals in the Mid-West are on the alert for a possible significant surge in Covid-19 cases during the Christmas period due to the increased transmission of the new Omicron variant, writes Dan Danaher. There were 109 new cases of Covid-19 in Clare on Sunday, December 19, 197 in Limerick and 51 in North Tipperary. This compared to 65 new cases in Clare on December 13, 149 in Limerick and 56 in Tipperary. Meanwhile, the 14-day incidence of Covid-19 in Clare has increased slightly from 1,120 per 100,000 on December 13 to 1,133 on December 19. It also went up marginally in Limerick from 913 to 1,024 but fell in Tipperary from 1,441 to 1,322 during the same period. There were 1,331 cases in Clare from November 30 to December 13, 1,780 in Limerick and 2,300 in Tipperary during the same period. The latest 14-day incidence rate from December 6 to December 19 reveal 1,347 new cases in Clare, 1,996 …

Walk-in COVID Vaccine Booster Clinics for the 40+ years age group are being extended today, Wednesday, at the Limerick (Scoil Carmel, Limerick) and Clare (West County Hotel, Ennis) COVID-19 Vaccination Centres. Both clinics had been due to start at 3.30pm, but will now open at 12.30pm and operate up to 7pm this evening. Anyone eligible for a vaccine in this age group can attend walk-in clinics at any of the three area vaccination centres in the Mid-West, regardless of county of residence. The walk-in vaccine booster clinic for 40+ years in the Tipperary centre (Abbey Court Hotel, Nenagh) will run from 3.30-7pm today.

A CLARECASTLE woman has been appointed as the Irish Ambassador to Singapore. The ambassadorial appointment of Sarah McGrath to the prestigious role was among 22 approved by the Government at a meeting last week and has been described as “a proud day for County Clare”. Sarah is a daughter of Anne McGrath and is a native of Clarecastle but has lived in Dublin for some time. She has worked in the Department of Foreign Affairs for the past 20 years where she is currently Director of the UN and Multilateral Unit, Development Cooperation and Africa Division. Deputy Joe Carey said, “I have just spoken with Sarah McGrath to congratulate her on being appointed the next Irish Ambassador to Singapore, Brunei and Timor Leste.” “This year’s ambassadorial nominees made history with women due to take up half the roles for the first time ever. Sarah will take her place in this historic announcement as the first female Irish Ambassador to Singapore, …

AN elderly woman using a walking frame was forced to step onto the road due to cars being parked on the footpath at a popular Ennis beauty spot in an incident described as “upsetting and frightening”, a meeting of local councillors heard. The Ennis Municipal District is now to make the case to gardaí to have double yellow lines installed at the entrance to Ballybeg Woods after “health and safety concerns” about motorists parking on the footpath at the entrance was highlighted. Councillor Clare Colleran Molloy raised the issue at a recent meeting of the municipal district calling for a review of the area to be undertaken to address “ongoing parking on the footpath approaching the Ballybeg Road entrance to the Ballybeg Woods”. She said the current situation “is preventing pedestrians, pedestrians with child buggies and wheelchair users from using the footpath, thereby forcing them to walk on the road”. The councillor acknowledged recent improvement works carried out at Ballybeg …

INSPIRATIONAL young people from around Clare were honoured for their “selflessness, volunteerism and a generosity of spirit” as the winners of the 6th annual Clare Garda Youth Awards were unveiled. Three individuals and one group were recognised for the civic and personal spirit they displayed in helping others and overcoming challenges. The awards, organised by the Clare Garda Division district and sponsored by Shannon Group, seek to identify inspirational young leaders in recognition of their voluntary community work and personal achievements. All award nominees and winners are aged between 14 and 19 years. This year’s winners were recognised for a wide variety of voluntary work, among these, delivering virtual summer camps to young people and hosting digital events for children with special needs; overcoming personal challenges to coach young sports club members; helping provide translation services for community members unable to speak English; involvement in projects tackling discrimination, environmental issues and promoting positive mental health. Congratulating the winners, Mary Considine …