Gort

A UNIQUE exhibition of photographs by a Ukrainian Woman living in a Gort is being launched this coming Sunday, March 26 in The Hidden Gem Café in Bridge Street.  ‘Gort Night Shadows’ is an exhibition of photographs of the town and its surroundings at night, accompanied by poetry about Ireland through the eyes of Polina Bashkina who arrived in Gort in March 2022 after fleeing the war in Ukraine.  The exhibition runs up to the end of April and all funds raised will be donated to Ukrainian Animal Charities. “I started learning to draw,” Polina said. “And I ran out of black paint first. No wonder: even being far away, you are attuned to the colour scheme of your country – to the darkness that is trying to absorb the light of my Ukraine. However, in Ireland, I discovered that black could be poetic.” Polina is a writer from Ukraine who temporarily lives in Gort due to the war in her country. In November 2021, Polina’s book …

Less than two weeks after a public meeting to discuss concerns about a grant of planning permission for a biogas plant in Gort, more than €60,000 has been raised to fund a legal challenge. Gort Biogas Concern Group have confirmed to The Champion that legal representation has been secured to initiate a judicial review. The group said it is determined to overturn An Bord Pleanála’s decision to green light the controversial project, in the wake of its rejection by Galway County Council.  “Six days after the meeting over €60,000 had been raised,” spokesperson Ciarán O’Donnell said. “We had around 400 people attend the meeting last week and raised a lot of funds on the night so that we can take a court challenge to this decision. Local business people are genuinely worried, everyone is worried and even though everyone is struggling financially, they are putting in money they can’t afford, because they feel so strongly. We even had a school …

THE Yeats Thoor Ballylee Society is looking to the future when it comes to bringing the history of the south-Galway attraction and its link to poet WB Yeats to life. The society has taken part in an initiative which will make it easier than ever for visitors to learn more about the historic Thoor Ballylee near Gort. An app has been developed by Great Visitor Experiences with the support of the Yeats Thoor Ballylee Society volunteers. This app will allow everybody visiting the 14th century tower to discover the story of this unique place was once described by Seamus Heaney as “in cultural terms – the most important building in Ireland” due to its close association with fellow Nobel Laureate for literature, WB Yeats. The well-preserved fourteenth-century tower was where Yeats spent summers with his family and was inspired to write some of his finest poetry, making the tower his permanent symbol. As part of the initiative QR codes have …

GORT native Dr James Mahon has become one of the first doctors of mobile journalism after passing his examinations as a guest of Queens University Belfast in June, writes Conor Clohessy. The broadcast journalist, author and lecturer conducted field research with newsrooms of STV (Scotland), NDTV (India), CBS, WDEF and News 12 (USA) and Lemen Bleu (Switzerland) as part of a pioneering study between 2018 and 2019. James was looking into how digital technology is changing broadcasting around the world and found that in many situations these innovations in the workplace were cutting costs for the companies but also having an adverse effect on the older employees. James explained: “I found that this is an economic thing. You can argue that audiences want mobile content, livestreaming and social media content, of course they do. But you can also argue that it saves newsrooms hundreds of thousands of pounds.” While cost-cutting in most industries causes a stunt in innovation, James found …

GARDAÍ have seized almost €19,000 worth of suspected cannabis herb following the search of a house overnight. Gardaí attached to the Galway Divisional Drugs Unit carried out a search under warrant of a house in the Kiltartan area of Gort, shortly after 10.30pm on Monday May 17. During the course of the search, a quantity of suspected cannabis herb valued at approximately €16,500, and suspected cannabis plants valued at approximately €2,400 were discovered. These items were seized and are being sent for forensic analysis. No arrests have been made. An investigation is ongoing.

  WHILE work on Phase 1 of the Gort River walk has been delayed due to Covid-19, the overseeing development group has been busy planning Phase 2, which includes an upgrade to an old footbridge in Lavally. Phase 1 has been funded by the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (ORIS), but Phase 2 is looking to advance planning permission and depending on funds application for match funding using Rural Regeneration or ORIS schemes again. “There is so much potential for this amenity,” highlight ed David Murray, chair of the group. “We have an old walking route of significant heritage and natural value right at our doorstep and with very little investment we could have a 3.4km loop from the centre of Gort along the river” In recent times, the walk was heavily used by the community as it dealt with Covid-19 restrictions and it’s become a very active route at weekends. “We have a plan for Phase 1 to enhance the …

A SOUTH Galway wheelchair user has voiced his concern about the accessibility of vehicles on Local Link routes currently, and called on Minister Shane Ross to “cop on” and return the service to Clare Bus. Séamus Ó Donnacha from Kinvara, who works for Clare Crusaders in Barefield, has been using a wheelchair for 15 years, said the nature of the accessible buses currently on the routes removed independence from passengers with disabilities, and literally left them “stuck at the back of the bus”. “To my knowledge, there are some accessible buses in the fleet which are able to cater for wheelchair users,” Mr Ó Donnacha outlined. “Clare Bus had low-floor buses which meant that someone could get straight onto the bus. Now, what we have are vehicles with tail lifts at the back. That means that wheelchair user needs to be helped on board, and they’re left there away from everyone else and can’t interact with others. That’s an upsetting …

Army explosives experts have dealt with a suspect device, believed to have been a pipe bomb, found in a remote location on the Slieve Aughty mountains near Gort. The  device was discovered by gardaí along with a quantity of ammunition as part of an ongoing intelligence-led operation at Scalp Hill, close to Castledaly, on the main Gort to Loughrea Road. Detectives located two boxes of ammunition and a pipe containing a suspect device in a section of woodland during the search operation. The device was made safe by the Army Explosives Ordnance Disposal unit. All items seized will be subject to technical examination and investigations are ongoing. This afternoon  gardaí in Loughrea issued an appeal for information in connection with the discovery of the ammunition and what is now believed to be components of a pipe bomb. Items located at the scene have been removed for forensic examination. They are appealing to the public who may have been in this area recently …