Tag Archives: Miltown Malbay

CANON Michael McLaughlin will reach a remarkable milestone on June 11, when he celebrates the 60th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood. Unlike 10 years ago, when large numbers attended the special mass and celebrations in Kilmaley to mark the golden jubilee of his ordination in Carlow Cathedral in 1960, things will be more subdued this time round. The Covid-19 restrictions mean that the members of community will be unable to organise a mass to mark the big occasion for the now retired Kilmaley parish priest, less still a big party, but they are always with him in spirit. The 84-year-old Miltown Malbay native, who is now visually impaired, has great memories of all the parishes he’s been in. “I hated leaving the first parish I was assigned to; I would have stayed there forever if I could. But you learn to move along, you’ve no choice, and you learn and gain different experiences wherever you go. I benefited …

FEARS have been expressed for the future of the Bank of Ireland branch in Tulla and a campaign to save it from permanent closure has begun. The bank, which is located on Main Street in the town, was among 101 branches nationwide to close temporarily from March 24 last, in a move which Bank of Ireland said would enable it to focus on priority services during the Covid-19 crisis. The branches in Kilkee and Miltown Malbay were also closed as part of the bank’s response. In Tulla, the Bank of Ireland branch is the only bank in the town. Its closure has left the people of the town relying on an ATM in the local supermarket to access cash over the last two months. Raising his concerns at the May meeting of the Killaloe Municipal District, Councillor Pat Hayes, called on Bank of Ireland to “come clean” about the future of the Tulla branch. “The branch was closed down very …

  THE plight of asylum seekers living in the dilapidated Direct Provision centre in Miltown Malbay has been brought the attention of the Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan. Rodents, leaking bathrooms and substandard food, are among serious problems that have been identified at the Central Hostel on the Main Street, resulting in a call for its closure. However, on Wednesday of this week (June 3), Mr Pat Kelly, owner of the Central Hostel, said he didn’t wish to make any comment on the issues raised on behalf of the asylum seekers other than to say “these are all false allegations”. A letter has been sent on behalf of the 12 men to the minister by the Miltown Malbay Welcome Group, outlining health and safety issues at the hostel where the asylum seekers are being housed. The letter has been copied to Clare TD Cathal Crowe, who is calling on the minister to deal with the issues as a matter of …

Clare Independent TD Michael McNamara says he has received confirmation from Irish Water that the proposed replacement of the old watermains from Miltown Malbay to Mullagh will commence during first quarter of 2021. Deputy McNamara says a contractor (Healy Rae Plant Hire – HRPH) has been appointed to carry out the works, the First Phase (Site Investigation) of which has already been completed. Meanwhile, Irish Water has confirmed to Deputy McNamara that four smaller but significant watermain replacement projects will be completed in Clare during the final quarter of 2020. They include the watermain at Mains Street in Scarriff, the Castlecrine to Kilmurray watermain, 2.5km of watermain at Milltown Road in Tulla, and the watermain in Parnell St, Ennis. Responding to the update regarding the Miltown Malbay to Mullagh works, Deputy McNamara said, “I cautiously welcome this news from Irish Water as there have been numerous false starts regarding this project in recent years. It has been a frustrating and …

CONCERN at ongoing delays in upgrading the water service in the Miltown Malbay area has prompted one local woman to go public on the matter, saying that a fourth outage in as many weeks, has put her family and her livestock at risk. In a letter to The Clare Champion, Dolores Murphy of Rineen described a litany of issues that she and her neighbours have endured in recent years. While Irish Water has apologised for the situation, the utility has confirmed that it will be 2021 before all works to secure the supply are completed. Last week, a burst water main led to an outage affecting Miltown Malbay, Mullagh, Spanish Point, Cree, Cooraclare and those on surrounding Group Water Schemes. Commenting on the situation, Mrs Murphy, wrote: “It has come to the point where I can no longer sit in silence. In the past month (four calendar weeks) we have been without water four times. The latest interruption to service …

A FOURTREEN -year-old boy has died in an accident on a family farm in West Clare today. It is understood the boy sustained fatal injuries when a tractor overturned on him on the farm, which is situated between Ennistymon and Miltown Malbay. The boy has not been identified pending notification of his wider family. Garda Superintendent John Galvin said the gardaí responded to an emergency call that an accident had occurred on a farm at around 9am. The ambulance service was also tasked to the scene. “The gardaí notified the coroner and the body was removed to University Hospital Limerick where a post mortem is due to be carried out this evening. “The Health and Safety Authority has also been notified and will visit the farm.” The superintendent said the accident came as a big shock to the community. “I want to extend my sympathy on behalf of the gardaí to the young boy’s parents and immediate family, as well …

SILENT and sombre were the centenary commemoration of one of the bloodiest attacks on a Clare community during the War of Independence. Unfortunately, due to the Covid 19 crisis, plans for the Canada Cross, Miltown Malbay commemoration, as part of Clare’s Decade of Centenaries, scheduled for Saturday, April 18, were put on hold. The community was to honour Patrick Hennessy, John O’Loughlin and Thomas O’Leary, who lost their lives at Canada Cross on April 14, 1920. Instead, the victims were remembered in the hearts and prayers of their descendants and the wider community in their homes. Reflecting on the attack at the time, Dr Michael Fogarty, Bishop of Killaloe, said, “My poor people they have made a Calvary of your little square, but what was meant for a massacre has become a consecration.” The families of the dead and wounded in the attack, the Mid Clare Brigade Commemoration Committee and St Joseph’s GAA Club had organised a programme that will …

A YOUNG Nigerian asylum seeker, based in West Clare, has challenged negative media portrayal of relations between rural communities and those seeking international protection in Ireland. Innocent Iroaganachi is one of approximately 31 men being provided with emergency accommodation in Miltown Malbay and says his experience there has been “wonderful”, thanks to the welcome afforded by the local community. Innocent told The Clare Champion that he decided to seek asylum here after he challenged homophobic attitudes of the government and some community leaders. His decision to speak out is something he believes lead to him being sacked from his job as a Dean of Students at a leading secondary school in Abia in the South East of Nigeria. He was already in Ireland pursuing an internship in the media when he learned that his employment had been terminated. “There was a situation in at the school and I responded by using common sense and judgement,” he explains. “But the situation was …