Regional

GORT and South Galway will be without “an essential service” from next week, according to Councillor Bridie Willers. The Department of Social Protection confirmed that community welfare services are to be relocated from Gort and other locations in south and east Galway to the new Intreo office in Loughrea with effect from next Monday. The new social welfare office in Station Road, Loughrea and the community welfare officer will cover an area from Kilchreest to Kinvara. According to Councillor Willers, “The decision by the Department of Social Protection to axe the community welfare officer (CWO) service in Gort will leave many vulnerable people in distress and is totally unacceptable. “There is no public transport whatsoever between the towns of Gort and Loughrea. People who do not own a car, and there are many, will have to travel by bus to Galway/Oranmore and then catch a bus to Loughrea,” she added. Bus Éireann confirmed there is currently no direct public transport …

MONEY allocated this week for work at the promenade in Lahinch should be used to make the beach accessible for people with disabilities, according to the county’s Centre for Independent Living (CIL). The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine announced it is providing €333,000 for capital works projects in marine leisure and tourism infrastructure in North Clare. This funding will go to two projects, the upgrade of the promenade in Lahinch and the redevelopment of Liscannor pier, and will be 75% funded by the department, with the remainder coming from the local authority. Responding to the funding announcement, Clare CIL is calling on the local authority and public representatives to ensure the development on the promenade in Lahinch is suitable for people with disabilities and wheelchair users. Clare CIL wants Lahinch beach to be made more accessible with the new funding. The 2000 Equal Status Act and 2005 Disability Act states that public places must be accessible for people …

ON Tuesday Minister for Health James Reilly declined to commission a study into the effect of the odours that have tormented residents of Shannon over the last month. In the Dáil, Clare TD Michael McNamara asked the minister “if he will commission a study to look into the effect of smells in Shannon; if he or his officials can provide assurances to Shannon residents that the smells there do not pose a threat to public health and if he will make a statement on the matter.” Responding, the minister said, “I do not propose to commission a study to look at the effect of smells in Shannon as an investigation into the matter is already underway. I am advised by the HSE that the investigation of recent odours in Shannon is being undertaken by the EPA and Clare County Council. This investigation is being assisted by the Public Health and Environmental Health Departments of the HSE.” Regarding the investigation, he …

DEBATE and disagreement broke out over the scale of the rat problem in Shannon at Tuesday’s town council meeting. There have been numerous complaints about the amount of rats going around the town in recent weeks but at Tuesday’s meeting, there were suggestions that the problem isn’t as bad as has been claimed, something some of the members angrily refuted. At the meeting, Councillor Sean McLoughlin put forward a motion asking that County Council carry out rat baiting on a regular basis in Shannon and for the council to clean out any place where rats might nest. Councillor Cathy McCafferty had another motion requesting that members be informed of what arrangements the council had entered into with regard to pest/rodent control since the last local elections in 2009. The written response to Councillor McLoughlin’s motion from senior executive engineer Eugene O’Shea said Shannon isn’t worse than any other county. “While it is impossible to inspect all possible locations where rodents …

SHANE O’Donnell wrote himself into the history books on Saturday and a child born early on Monday morning, in the most dramatic of circumstances, will bear his first name. Shannon’s Laura Hinsley gave birth to her fourth child and first son at the side of the road close to the Clare-Limerick border, after a dash to the hospital didn’t quite succeed. Describing the morning, she said, “My husband was doing 160km going in the road but I knew once we hit Bunratty that it was coming. He had to pull over across from the Two Mile Inn. We went from flying down the road to pulling in and the baby was just there! He delivered the baby, made sure it was crying and put his hoody around it and drove on again to the hospital; it had happened in a matter of seconds. I’d say we were only stopped for about a minute and a half, it was that fast. …

DOZENS of concerned people attended a public meeting on Tuesday night at the Oakwood Arms about the odours that have lingered around Shannon in the last few weeks. The anger at the meeting, which was attended by representatives of Clare County Council, but not the EPA, was palpable. There were different views on the type of odour causing the problem, with several people saying it resembled sewage and others saying it was like raw eggs. Many expressed their concerns about the impact upon their health and said they are worried about the impact of air quality on children. There was also much anger after Clare County Council engineer, Sean Ward, acknowledged that the local sewage treatment plant is not adequate, but that there is no prospect of it being improved in the immediate future because the millions required to do so is not available. The meeting was chaired by local man Chris Price and with emotions running high, he had …

UP to 150 people are expected in Coole Park and Gort this weekend for the 19th annual Lady Gregory Autumn Gathering. This year, the gathering centres on women writers and includes readings and workshops by a number of well-known writers and academics. “By inviting famous women writers of Irish descent from around the world to follow in the footsteps of this remarkable woman, we are honouring Lady Gregory’s contribution to Irish arts and culture in this unique gathering. We seem to be attracting a wider international audience, both male and female, with this enhanced Gathering. “Spread over five days instead of three, from Thursday to Monday, more overseas visitors will be attracted to South Galway and to Ireland, in support of the Gathering Ireland 2013 initiative,” explained honorary secretary of the event, Marion Cox. Last year’s events as part of the Gathering were booked out and Marion is expecting a large crowd again this year. “The feedback has been absolutely …

THE opening of the Gort to Tuam motorway would be a “game changer” for Galway and would bring with it a “much-needed economic boost”, according to one local representative. Labour Senator Lorraine Higgins has written to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to ask that every effort is made to ensure early delivery of the new Gort to Tuam dual-carriageway. “I have written to Minister Brendan Howlin and informed him that this road is a very necessary piece of infrastructure for the people of East Galway and beyond. I have urged him to ensure all financing matters are finalised so it can proceed to construction as soon as possible” she said. “Having proper road facilities in the county will open up all sorts of opportunities in terms of foreign direct investment, given improved accessibility. The motorway will deliver a much-needed economic boost to Galway East and to all the towns and villages along the route and trigger a revitalisation …