Regional

SHANNON councillors are urging Transport Infrastructure Ireland to make a move in the right direction and erect road signage that would show people the way to the Shannon Aviation Museum and Educational Centre. Councillor PJ Ryan, speaking at a meeting of the Shannon Municipal District, pointed to the growing popularity of the attraction as he called on the council to request TII to erect the signage on the N18/M18 and N19. He said that museum acts as both a tourist attraction and a place of education with colleges and schools visiting the centre to introduce young people to aviation. “Shannon has had a lot of firsts in aviation and the public like to be able to relate to that,” he said adding, “we need to be able to direct people towards it.” Anne O’Sullivan, senior executive engineer, told the meeting that Councillor Ryan’s request has been forwarded to TII for consideration and response. Councillor Ryan stated, “Hopefully there will be …

CLARE Ógra Fianna Fáil has elected its first female chair, Ennistymon’s Aoíbhann de Búrca Quinlivan, at its recent AGM. Youth wing members from across the county came together with Oireachtas members Cathal Crowe TD and Senator Timmy Dooley to elect the leadership team for the year at the meeting. The newly elected chair replaces outgoing chair Fionn Sexton of Miltown Malbay. Clare Ógra veteran and national political staffer David Griffin will remain on as deputy chair with Liam Hayes as secretary, Jack O’Dea elected PRO and Colm Maher taking the role of treasurer. Aoíbhann said, “I’m delighted to take on the role of chair of Clare. There is a lot of work to do but we are all very excited to see what we can achieve in the coming year. “We have a fantastic team in place with excellent support from our public representatives. “The main focus over the next few months will be getting our name out there and …

A FARMER has had to use silage bales to prevent illegal encampments beside a graveyard in East Clare, in a situation described as “crazy, outrageous, and scandalous”. At the July meeting of the Killaloe Municipal District, incoming Cathaoirleach Alan O’Callaghan appealed to the Council to put in a long-term solution, saying the problem at Ballysheen Graveyard is an ongoing one.  “The ground was given to Clare County Council for the graveyard, in order to facilitate parking,” the Kilmurry man outlined. “Unfortunately, it was being used for other things. A local farmer hat to put bales out. I would not be in agreement with them being taken away, until something long term is actually done in order to stop the issue of illegal encampments. “When pressure is on in other places, that’s when encampments arrive there. Kerbing might work. We have to remember that the farmer has forfeited several bales of silage.There are a good few there.” The Fianna Fáil member …

A SHANNON councillor is calling for ‘Action’ in promoting the positives of the town. Councillor Donna McGettigan has proposed that the Shannon Municipal District create a video showcasing Shannon and involving community volunteer groups, drone and photo footage. “Our town has some beautiful spots such as the loop and pump track for people to come to visit,” she said at a meeting of the Shannon Municipal District. The councillor stated, “A lot of time people tend to focus on the negative, but we need to focus on the positives.” She pointed out that Shannon has a number of community groups “who help make our town what it is” including Tidy Towns and Meals on Wheels who could be featured in the video. She added that Shannon is also home to sporting world champions who could also make an appearance in the video “and talk about growing up in Shannon.” She said the video would be a means of “showing Shannon …

MONDAY, August 1, will see a gathering in East Clare to commemorate two Old IRA volunteers, who were involved in a number of ambushes at the height of the War of Independence. Following extensive research, the family of Captain Mattie McGrath and his brother Dinny of Annaghneal, will remember their contribution to the fight for Irish freedom, and that of their comrades in the Sixth Battalion of the East Clare Brigade. The brothers were involved in up to six ambushes on Crown forces in East and South East Clare, including attacks like the high-profile Glenwood Ambush. “We knew a bit about Mattie and Dinny when we were growing up, but we’ve found out a lot more since then,” said Mike McGrath, a nephew of the men. “The Sixth Battalion organised ambushes all over East Clare, during the War of Independence, with Mattie and Dinny involved in many of them.” Research by Mike’s nephew, Seán, and his daughter Aoife, show that …

TOURISTS coming into East Clare could be at a serious disadvantage if they are driving an Electric Vehicle (EV), due to a lack of rapid chargers.  That was the view expressed by Councillor Pat Hayes who made an appeal, at the July meeting of the Killaloe Municipal District committee, for better infrastructure to support EVs.  “I’m being asked every day about this and I’d like a progress report,” he said. “I’m wondering about the rapid charging points in particular. If someone comes off the motorway and wants to charge their EV in Killaloe or Scariff, we don’t have a plan for that yet.” The Caher man pointed out that as more motorists make the switch to EVs, charging infrastructure needs to keep pace. “There’s a huge amount of people moving to electric cars and asking where the fast-charging points are,” he said. “The fact is, we don’t have any. There is urgency around this now. We need at least one …

Joseph Woulfe believes the energy crisis means we must continue to burn turf   EVERYONE in our family visits the bog almost every year. It’s our pilgrimage in some ways. it has been done for generations – to use what nature offers in our locality to heat us through the winter period. I remember my late father, Charles, building a special timber wheelbarrow to bring the sle’an turf from the bank and carefully laying the sods out to dry in the summer sunshine at Jack at Rita Moroney’s Bog near Mullagh. On the way home from a hard day’s work, we would be given a treat (or perhaps you could call it a bribe) of ice cream at Sexton’s Shop in Mullagh or the Crosses of Annagh. Over time, we moved to a more mechanised bog system in Kilmihil where the Coughlan family use a hopper. In primary school, we learned all about fossil fuels, how they grew and, over …

VANDALISM in the local playground has prompted a staff of Clare County Council to contact Crusheen Gardaí. The matter was raised by the incoming Cathaoirleach of the Killaloe Municipal District when members held their July meeting. Councillor Alan O’Callaghan said he had been asked by locals in Crusheen to raise the issue. He tabled a motion calling for lighting or other works to stamp out the problem.   “There have been a few incidents of anti-social behaviour recently within the playground,” he said. “I think that a few lights leading into the playground would be ideal.” The Kilmurry man thanked Community Playground Coordinator, John Treacy for a reply to his motion. He said the problem of anti-social behaviour wasn’t widespread, but that there were concerns in Crusheen. “There are a lot of lovely playgrounds, on some occasions, anti social behaviour happens,” he said. “We don’t have too much of it, but the problem is rising in Crusheen area and I hope …