News

FOLLOWING recent positive news of the resumption of eight Ryanair routes from Shannon, the airport received another boost with a new winter route announced. Ryanair is to introduce a new weekly service on Saturdays from Shannon to Turin, commencing on December 18 and running until March 26. This is the first Turin service to operate from Shannon Airport since 2009. Welcoming the announcement, Mary Considine, CEO, Shannon Group said: “We would like to congratulate Ryanair on the opening of their new Turin base. We are delighted to be adding this popular winter destination for our Irish customers to enjoy. Good news Turin lovers! ✈️ Ryanair will now connect Turin with the following cities: Budapest 🇭🇺 Copenhagen 🇩🇰Krakow 🇵🇱 Edinburgh 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Kyiv 🇺🇦 Madrid, Malaga, Sevilla 🇪🇸 London 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Paris 🇫🇷 Marrakech 🇲🇦 Tel Aviv 🇮🇱 Shannon 🇮🇪 pic.twitter.com/D7zo8mO8jW — Around Turin (@AroundTurin) June 16, 2021 “Aviation has a long journey ahead, but It is great at last to see some …

SCAMMERS cloned the phone number of Shannon Garda Station and persuaded a local man to lodge €5,000 cash into a Bitcoin machine, writes Jessica Quinn. Fortunately, after contacting gardaí in Shannon the man was able to retrieve his money. This is just one of numerous reports of scams operating in Clare during the week. Crime Prevention Officer Sergeant Triona Brooks has warned, “Never give out your information be it over the phone, text or email.” She outlined that the Shannon resident received a call from a 085 number. The man on the phone said that there was a warrant out for his arrest and asked him what was his local Garda Station, with the victim replying Shannon. “The caller then told him he would get a further call with instructions. He then received another call from a male saying that he was a police officer from Shannon Garda Station. The number of Shannon Garda Station had been cloned by the …

GARDAI are seeking witnesses to an assault at a north Clare resort in the early hours of Sunday morning. At approximately 00.45 a.m. on Sunday, June 20, an unprovoked assault took place on a young man in Saddle Lane, Lahinch. The suspect was not known to him and was possibly wearing a black or blue jumper. The young man sustained a broken nose and cut to his lip. If anyone was in the area of Saddle Lane which is a residential lane between Lahinch Surf shop and Beach Burger Takeaway and witnessed this assault they are asked to ring Ennistymon Garda Station on 065 6837622 or any Garda Station.

A BURREN resident, who has worked as a private chef to The Rolling Stones, will feature in a brand new RTÉ Player series starting tomorrow (Tuesday, June 22) night. Julia Hemingway, of Julia’s Lobster Truck, will  take part in The Battle of The Food Trucks presented by James Patrice. Julia will go head-to-head with fellow mobile chefs from across Ireland in an attempt to be crowned Ireland’s finest food truck. Julia will be planning to wow the judges with a menu of simple but delicious seafood, all fresh, local, and ethically sourced. Julia started her career in The French House, London and went on to work as a private chef to Mick Jagger and the Stones. Contestants will need to pull out all the stops to impress the judges – Eric Matthews, Head Chef at Michelin starred Chapter One Restaurant and Instagram sensation and cookbook author Gina Daly of The Daly Dish. Over the course of six weeks, six contestants …

THE Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival has been cancelled for the second year in a row due to the impact of Covid-19, it has been confirmed. The event, which takes place in the north Clare town every year and attracts tens of thousands of visitors from across Ireland and the world, had been due to take place across the whole month of September. Festival organiser Marcus White said, “As the Government have advised that there should be no large-scale indoor events until the whole population has been vaccinated, this year’s Lisdoonvarna Festival has regrettably been cancelled.” He noted that many people, especially younger ones, will not be fully vaccinated before the end of September. “All our events are staged inside including the country music marquee which can accommodate up to 2,000 people which is not permissible under current guidelines,” said Mr White. “We would not be able to manage the very large crowds that normally throng our small town for a month.” …

THE best of County Clare will be broadcast into millions of homes across the United States this autumn as part of a popular travel series. Peninsula Television will be filming at multiple locations throughout the county this week, from Tuesday to Thursday, June 22 to 24, as part of its ‘Ireland: County by County’ series, which has been viewed by millions of US viewers since its launch in 2020. The 30-minute programme will air on the Create/PBS television network and will be fronted by Irish television presenter Ciara Whelan, who is best known for hosting Virgin Media’s prime-time travel series, ‘The Holiday Show’. The production will concentrate on various cultural, sporting, social and heritage aspects of County Clare. Filming commences this Tuesday with a focus on Ennis and Clare’s international reputation as home to some of the best golf courses in Ireland. The production crew will depart to Shannon Airport to highlight this key asset of the county, before taking …

Reservations over funding ‘private company’ and possible neglect of other districts CLAIMS and counter claims were expressed by county councillors during heated exchanges before a controversial €10 million loan was approved for the Ennis 2040 Designated Activity Company (DAC) by a majority vote. Ennis 2040 Designated Activity Company (DAC) has been registered as a company to assist in identifying opportunities for development and employment in Ennis and making the town an attractive place to live and work. While councillors support investment for Ennis, several expressed grave reservations about the new funding mechanism proposed by the council executive at a meeting on Monday, and the lack of a similar package for rural Clare. The loan was passed by 23 votes to five, with Councillors Tony O’Brien, Gerry Flynn, Donna McGettigan, P J Kelly and Susan Crawford officially recording their opposition. Some of the remaining councillors who supported it – Pat Burke, Joe Killeen and Ian Lynch – did so reluctantly. Councillor …

Call for action to protect town’s citizens CALLS have been made for an “action plan” to protect the people of Ennis after recent statistics showed air pollution levels 12 times higher than safe limits. Environmental Protection Agency statistics show the county capital suffering huge air pollution despite a smoky coal ban being in place. Councillor Johnny Flynn called for the plan, saying this “very serious issue” has not got the attention it deserves because of the focus on Covid-19. He has also pointed out that research has shown that the impact of air pollution on people’s health can exacerbate the impact of the virus. The councillor said more air quality monitors should be put in place that could warn people vulnerable to air pollution of any potential risks. At the monthly meeting of the Ennis Municipal District the councillor asked for a review to be carried out into the causes of poor air quality in Ennis. He asked that the …