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West Clare

Shining a light on Loop Head’s maritime history

WEST Clare’s maritime history and unique landscape will be showcased at Loop Head Lighthouse this May Bank Holiday weekend through its status as one of the Great Lighthouses of Ireland. This weekend a flagship festival will take place at eight of the 12 Great Lighthouses of Ireland, an all-island tourism initiative that also includes lighthouses at Hook Head in Wexford, Valentia Island in Kerry and Donegal’s Fanad Head. Loop Head will offer family-friendly events that include tours, storytelling and a local food and craft showcase. On Bank Holiday Monday, a guided walk will be hosted along the peninsula from 11am, while there will be food-tasting stalls from 12 noon until 2pm. “This three-day weekend festival celebrates the best of Loop Head’s stunning coastline through a series of events and workshops. The public will be able to enjoy the stories of our maritime past, explore the tower to discover its hidden secrets, get tips on being safe and enjoying our coast …

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Search still continues for missing Japanese tourist

THE search continues for a missing Japanese tourist eight months after the body of her travelling companion was recovered from the waters off Kilkee. An inquest into the death last August of 63-year-old Eiji Takagi at Clare’s Coroner’s Court this week heard that the search is ongoing for fellow tourist Ushio Azaki, who also went missing. The remains of Mr Takagi, who had a Californian address, were recovered in Kilkee bay in water about 27m deep on August 30 of last year, following an extensive search of the area. The inquest was told that the pair were last seen alive when they checked out of The Bellbridge House Hotel and were due to visit Kilkee. Concern was raised when their hire car was seen parked at George’s Head for a number of days and a search operation was launched. Along with search and rescue teams from Lough Derg, Ennis and Aughinish, local coast guard units from Kilkee, Doolin and Ballybunion …

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‘Microwave hearing’ cited in Cooraclare mast appeal

Angela Collins, Leitrim, Cree, has lodged an appeal against Clare County Council’s decision to grant Brian Sexton of Clare Broadband planning permission to retain a broadband mast at Cloonreddan, Cooraclare. As part of her appeal, Ms Collins submitted a letter from her consultant neurologist, Dr Harib Rahman of the Neurology Department, University Hospital Galway and Galway Clinic. “Angela Collins is suffering from microwave hearing, due to the location of the mast near her home,” Dr Rahman stated. Corofin planning consultant, Brendan McGrath submitted a number of planning documents on behalf of Ms Collins. In a submission to the appeals’ board, Mr McGrath stated that a visual inspection shows the mast is about 17 metres in height, 70% higher than the 10 metres stated in the retention application. “In my opinion, the documentation and information submitted are of poor quality. In addition to misrepresentation of the physical scale of the development, there are other deficiencies. “The submitted drawings and plans do …

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Embracing support after farm tragedy

Diane Banville should be celebrating her third wedding anniversary on Tuesday with her husband, Kevin. But just 11 months after their big day, Kevin was killed in a farm accident. Formerly Kelly, Diane lives with her two young sons in Wexford but is well known in her home county, having played football for Miltown Malbay and Clare. Diane met Kevin Banville in a pub in Wexford on the May Bank Holiday weekend in 2007 when she was visiting a friend who lived there. By October, she had foregone the offer of a job in Barbados and moved to the sunny south-east. On April 19, 2013 she married the love of her life. St Patrick’s Day of 2014 started off like any other and the pair and their two young sons, two-year-old Ryan and five-week-old Cillian, were going to go to the local parade. “I remember walking up the lane about a week or two beforehand and just going, ‘I really …

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Kayaker pulled from water in Kilkee

A KAYAKER in his mid 30s, who is believed to have been visiting the area, was pulled from the water in the West End, Kilkee late on Wednesday afternoon. Members of the public had tried to help him by throwing life buoys into the water. The man got into difficulty at Majella’s Cove just before 5pm and was rescued shortly afterwards, after Kilkee Coastguard were alerted by the public. “It kicked off at 4.55pm, following reports from numerous members of the public that there was a person in difficulty in the bay in Kilkee. He was clinging to a kayak that had got overturned. The weather had got extremely bad here fairly fast,” Martony Vaughan, officer in charge of Irish Coastguard Unit in Kilkee said. “We were alerted and we got him over on the rocks. We took him to safety, recovered his kayak and several other bits. Members of the public had been throwing life rings into him from …

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Local backing for Doonbeg coastal works

FOLLOWING an information meeting between Trump International Golf Links and Hotel Ireland and Doonbeg Community Development, the chairman of the community group has said the vast majority of people in West Clare favour the proposed coastal protection works at the golf club. Consultants on behalf of the resort, which employs 230 people during the summer months, have submitted plans to Clare County Council, which would involve the use of 200,000 tonnes of limestone during the eight-month project. The consultants also claim that the West Clare economy would benefit to the tune of €38 million, between 2017 and 2024, if permission is granted. The plans lodged with the local authority will cost €10m if they are given the go-ahead, while the “beach augmentation” will be a 2.8km long coastal protection infrastructure, which golf club management say is “not a wall”. “From what we have heard, 99.9% of local people are in favour of these coastal protection works,” Doonbeg Community Development chairman …

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When is a wall not a wall?

WHILE Donald Trump is planning to build a wall between American and Mexico if elected United States President this November, his “small potatoes” resort in West Clare has applied to Clare County Council to construct a €10 million “beach augmentation” coastal protection barrier, which management insist is not a wall. If planning permission is granted to Trump International Golf Links and Hotel Ireland in Doonbeg to proceed with their 2.8km long beach augmentation plans, which would constitute the use of 200,000 tonnes of limestone, it will take eight months to complete the project. In their submission to the council, consultants warned that if planning permission is not granted, the resort may have to close. The consultants also claim that the West Clare economy would benefit to the tune of €38m, between 2017 and 2024, if permission is granted. A detailed non-technical summary, issued by resort management, states that the development will involve placing limestone rock armour in the vicinity of …

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Mary Dolling up for big fundraiser

MARY Conroy has so many dolls she won’t be able to bring all 20,000 of them to her fundraiser for Crumlin Children’s Hospital on the first weekend in April. Out of action for a few years due to back trouble – not, she insists, caused by lugging dolls about – the upcoming fundraiser in Sandyford, Dublin, will be her first for a few years. The Kilrush woman, who is originally from Pound Street, has been collecting dolls since she was a child and has two houses teeming with them in her back garden. “I have two big dolls houses in the garden and I have another shed full of prams. Unfortunately, they’re getting packed out now at the minute. They need to be somewhere to be displayed properly,” she mused. “I have a fair amount of them,” Mary conceded, when it was put to her that 20,000 dolls is a lot. “It’s a lot of work packing them up in …

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