East Clare

BURIALS are taking place at an East Clare cemetery with mourners and undertakers having to make their way around scaffolding supporting a dangerous church ruin. The situation at the Old Cemetery in Moynoe was highlighted at the September meeting of the Killaloe Municipal District by Councillor Pat Burke. The Whitegate native called for an outline of any works planned at the church ruins.  “Scaffolding was erected, some months ago, because the church is considered unsafe,” he told the meeting. “Burials have taken place and the scaffolding is still there. We were very grateful for the funding for works at Clonrush Cemetery and very keen to see similar works in Moynoe. I’m concerned, though, that that will take time and Moynoe can’t be left the way it is.” Councillor Joe Cooney seconded the motion. “We are aware of the inconvenience being caused to families there, but health and safety is very important,” he said. “The problem is funding. When we go …

THE cathaoirleach of the Killaloe Municipal District has described himself as “baffled” as to the raft of regulations on the installation of traffic calming ramps.  Councillor Alan O’Callaghan made his remarks as he called for ramps to be put in place as a safety measure for those using the school and playground in Kilkishen. In response to his motion, he was told that the installation of ramps at the location would have to meet the requirements of the Road Traffic Act (1994) and involve a public consultation process.  The Fianna Fáil member thanked Senior Executive Engineer (SEE) Derek Troy the “huge work” already done at school in Kilkishen. “Speeding is still cropping up all the time,” Councillor O’Callaghan insisted. “I’m only here since 2014, but I feel that since then, only one speed ramp has been put in. I think there’s a feeling that we’re going to try everything bar a ramp. There are ramps in Newmarket, Sixmilebridge, Shannon, and …

A SOUTH-East Clare landlord have been left with an estimated cleaning bill of €12,000 and unpaid rent totalling more than €4,000 after two tenants ruined a modern two bedroomed furnished cottage near the Lakes Nursing Home in Killaloe. The landlady, who purchased the cottage for €400,000 during the peak of the Celtic Tiger in 2005, was shocked to find the state of the house was in such a poor condition when her tenants eventually left a huge mess behind them. While the landlord has opted to remain anonymous for personal reasons, she decided to go public about her experience to show how irresponsible tenants are not helping the current housing accommodation crisis. A foul smell greets any visitor once they open the front door of the cottage after dogs were allowed to urinate and leave their faeces on carpets and furniture. “Food was left all over the place and bags of rubbish stored for months at rear when there were …

AS THE evenings draw in, an exciting programme of music and song will play out at venues on the shores of Lough Derg in Mountshannon.  ‘Autumn by the Lough’  is curated by local musician Clí Donnellan, and an initiative of Clare Arts Presents (CAP). Supported by The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, through Clare Arts Office, and Mountshannon Arts, the eclectic programme will include traditional and contemporary sounds.  Events get underway this Friday, September 30, at 8pm at St Caimin’s Church of Ireland in Mountshannon with a performance from AWNYA. Drawing on the tradition of storytelling, this Clare conceptual artist and singer-songwriter promises to take audiences on a theatrical journey through her songs, to create a full immersive experience. There is honesty and comedy woven into her songs, as well as what is described as “a refreshing view of the world of broken hearts!”. AWNYA’s music has been described as ‘Vaudeville Folk’ and a highly entertaining …

A COMMUNITY information meeting will take place in North East Clare to highlight the work of an important water quality initiative.  The event, which will focus on the catchment of Lough Graney, will be held at Lough Graney Community Hall in Flagmount at 7.30pm on Wednesday, October 5. The Graney Catchment is one of six pilot catchments in Ireland which have been selected for inclusion in a new €20 million European Union funded project called ‘Waters of LIFE’. The initiative aims to address the decline in water quality in Ireland’s most pristine and sensitive river catchments, like the Graney Catchment, which covers East Clare and part of South East Galway. Pristine, or near pristine waterbodies (rivers and lakes), are called ‘high-status objective waterbodies’ and are assigned a ‘Blue Dot’ to distinguish them as ‘the best of the best’ among Irish waterbodies. Blue Dot waterbodies are mainly located in remote and lightly populated areas, with many of them found in upland …

ADVENTURER Declan McEvoy is back on the road for Stage Six of his Round-the-Word Motorcycle Journey.  The much-travelled Quin native has already broken records on his global odyssey. Earlier this month, he set out from Lusaka in Zambia, with the aim to travelling along the West of the African continent, all the way to Dakar in Senegal. His daring itinerary, which will involve diplomatic, navigational and mechanical skills. The 10,000km trek is set to take him through Namibia, Angola, Congo Kinshasa, Cabinda, Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau. “Last year my efforts were thwarted in Oshakati due to the Angolan border being closed because of Covid,” Declan said. “This year I’m feeling more optimistic of making better progress and the visa chasing game is currently in full swing.” Arriving in Zambia, in the South of Africa, Declan was well prepared to make the most of local Irish contacts. “I immediately felt comfortable to …

A DECISION on funding for the long-awaited Inis Cealtra Visitor Experience Centre is expected to be made in the coming weeks, Deputy Michael McNamara has been told in Dáil Éireann. The Independent TD questioned Minister Heather Humphreys as to when there would be news on a major funding application made by Clare County Council. A Category 1 application was made, in April, by the Council to the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF). Deputy McNamara sought a statement from the Minister for Rural and Community Development in relation for the timeframe on that funding decision.  The Fine Gael minister told the Scariff TD that she understood that the application in question was made to the fourth round of funding, which closed at the end of April. “My Department received 42 applications to this call, together seeking funding of over €149 million,” Minister Humphreys said. “I understand that an application was received for the project referred to by the Deputy.” She …

A MOCK wedding that took place in Scariff 11 years ago, will end in ‘divorce’ next month in Mountshannon. The novel events are part of a fundraising campaign spearheaded by Shay O’Neill and Niamh Waterstone. The ‘wedding’ raised €12,500 for cancer services, and it is hoped that the ‘divorce’ will generate around €10,500 for Raheen Community Hospital. The comedy night, which takes place at Cois na hAbhna in Mountshannon on October 1, will also pay tribute to the memory of two East Clare women who worked at the Tuamgraney facility. Members of the families of the late Maria Bugler and Annette Turner, both of whom were from Mountshannon, are also involved in the fundraiser which will support dementia services. “Maria was great craic,” Shay said. “She was one of the bridesmaids at the mock wedding. She and Annette are really missed. We were thinking about them. I got in touch with their husbands about this idea and they were delighted. …