Month: February 2006

VISITING restrictions remain at Ennis hospitals and will not be removed until they are clear of the ‘Winter Vomiting Bug’ for more than 72 hours.

Two cases of the highly contagious infection were confirmed in St Joseph’s Hospital yesterday (Monday), with three other suspected cases also being investigated.

There is just one suspected case of the virus in the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Ennis.

The Health Service Executive Mid West Region first confirmed an outbreak in the Ennis hospitals over two weeks ago, when 11 cases were confirmed among patients.

The ‘Winter Vomiting Bug’ is a community infection, with outbreaks in hospitals a gauge of what is happening in the community.

Anyone wishing to visit the hospital is requested to check with reception staff or contact the hospital.

“Attendance at the Accident and Emergency Department should only be if absolutely necessary,” said a HSE spokesperson.

Out-patient, day care services and routine hospital admissions are not affected by the restrictions however.

In Healthcare Settings, such outbreaks are not completely preventable, but they are controllable, according to the National Guidelines on the Management of Outbreaks of the Norovirus Infection.

A COMPANY building a range of tourism accommodation in the north Clare area has suffered a setback, with An Bord Pleanala refusing a hotel development in Doolin.

Over the recent past, Bespoke Development Ltd has been involved in developing tourist facilities — mainly holiday homes — in Doolin and Liscannor.

However, the appeals board has refused planning for a hotel, bar and restaurant at Coogyulla, Doolin.

The proposed development site is in the vicinity of the crossroads at Coogyulla, which is already built up, primarily with clusters of singlestorey and dormer holiday homes.

Bespoke Development lodged plans in December 2004 for the two-storey hotel, in a bid to avail of tax incentives under a Government scheme.

However, the county council turned down permission, stating that the overall proposal comprised

haphazard and non-integrated de velopment, which would frustrate the comprehensive development and servicing of adjoining lands, and would set an undesirable precedent.

The local authority also ruled that the proposal be refused planning having regard to the poor draining soils, high water table and number of septic tanks and wastewater treatment systems in the area.

However, in their appeal, Bespoke Development claimed that the proposal on zoned land would improve the range of accommodation and services available in the settlement.

The company also stated that the proposal would provide a complimentary Park and Ride facility for the €32 million Cliffs of Moher visitor centre identified for the area.

The developers pointed out that the council accepted the principle and design of the development on the site.

However, An Taisce pointed out that the site lay outside the designated settlement, on a scenic route, and would be outside of the services.

In the inspector’s recommendations, he stated he was not, “satisfied that the proposed wastewater treatment facility on a separate site can adequately treat and dispose of effluent without any adverse impact upon the sensitive and vulnerable groundwater regime of this area.”

This view was endorsed by the appeals board and it refused permission, ruling that the site would constitute an unacceptable risk of ground and surface water pollution.

“The proposed development would, therefore, be prejudicial to public health.”

SHANNON was almost the scene of a dramatic stopover on Saturday night when world record holder Steve Fossett was nearly forced into an emergency landing.

Staff at the airport were on standby late on Saturday night, after it emerged that a fuel leak was detected onboard his Virgin Atlantic Globalflyer. The leak is believed to have occurred shortly after Mr Fossett took off from the Kennedy Space Shuttle centre in Florida, on Wednesday last.

Mr Fossett ignored warnings, during the final hours of his epic journey, that he should set down in Clare, in order to land in England.

His decision was made all the more risky as he had passed the ‘point of no return’ over the Atlantic. Shannon had been designated as a secondary landing area for the 61-year-old adventurer, who was attempting to break the world record for the longest non-stop flight in history.

He had originally intended to finish his journey in Kent, England, but was eventually forced to touch down in Bournemouth after an electrical problem nearly caused the plane’s ventilation system to overload.

As it turned out, it was in the skies above Shannon where the 61 year old former stockbroker broke the record, which had stood since 1986. He completed the 24,987 mile round trip in 76 hours to cement his place in the record books.

“It was looking like we could get him at one stage. He made a decision at 11 o’clock, when he had crossed the point of no return, to continue on towards England. We were on standby, but it never happened,” said Clare McHenry, spokesperson for Shannon Airport Authority.

A COUNTY Kerry solicitor has claimed that Kilrush District Court is engaging in a policy of “regulating an individual’s behaviour under the guise of the Bail Act”, by imposing strict curfews on defendants.

Pat Enright, of Lees Solicitors, Listowel, was in court yesterday representing a 17-yearold Kilrush youth, who faced having his bail revoked and being imprisoned for several alleged breaches of his bail conditions. The teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was found to have breached the terms of bail imposed on him in December, when he appeared for an alleged offence under the Public Order Act.

Mr Enright said he had no doubt that the court was entitled to impose conditions, but asked that it reflect on the effects of such conditions.

Pointing out that two other individuals were jailed by the same court yesterday for breaching bail terms the solicitor said, “all that is happening is that another layer of criminality is being introduced to the system. Gardaí are spending their time enforcing curfews when they could be dealing with other more serious matters,” he argued.

Mr Enright agreed with Judge Mangan that he was in court in December when the bail conditions were imposed and did not object at the time.

Judge Mangan revoked to accused’s bail and remanded him in custody to appear in court in Ennis on Friday next.

CLARE’S district court judge, Judge Joseph Mangan, is one of 49 district court judges to jointly scoop €996,299 in expenses last year.

Figures released through the Freedom of Information Act to The Clare People show that district court judges received on average €18,114 in expenses last year.

The payments claimed represented a drop on the €1,160,000 claimed by 46 judges in 2004.

Judge Mangan is likely to be in the upper half, in terms of expenses received, as he has a large area to administer, stretching from south Galway to south-east and west Clare.

The courts in which he presides at include Ennis, Ennistymon, Kildysart, Kilkee, Corofin, Kilrush, Tulla, Gort, Athenry and Killaloe. The payments received come on top on his salary of €124,550.

The breakdown provided by the FOI Unit at the Courts Service show that Judge Mangan and his district court colleagues travelled 324,610 miles, to hearings at the country’s 188 district court venues outside Dublin.

The judges received €351,331 on mileage and €630,198 on subsistence. They spent €14,769 on judges’ attire, including gowns.

The top ten earning district court justices received €400,000 in expenses in 2005.

The detailed breakdown shows that the top five claimants last year received respectively, €54,902, €51,681, €48,680, €42,045 and €40,836.

The top recipients would be those with no designated district, who would be assigned to travel to various court areas around the country, filling in for judges on annual or sick leave.

A statement accompanying the information pointed out that 99 per cent of expenses paid to judges last year arose from travel and subsistence expenses.

“Judges’ travel and subsistence is determined by the number of court sittings and the number of Judges assigned, both of which TWO CARS were overturned in a weekend in which there were four collisions, but no serious injuries to anyone involved. This car went off the Tulla Road, just outside Ennis, at 9.27am on Sunday. Another vehicle overturned at Kilrush Cross at 2.45pm on Sunday. Gardaí were also called to a collision near the West County Hotel at 12.58pm on Sunday and to an accident involving two vehicles at 8.13am on the Limerick Road.

THE family home of one of Clare’s most respected traditional musicians, Micho Russell, is to go under the hammer in Ennistymon next month. The house, which is located in Lough North in Doolin, will be sold along with 8.5 acres and is expected to fetch up to €300,000.

The house was built by Micho’s brother, Packie, almost 70 years ago and was inhabited by members of the Russell family until 2001. The site is likely to generate a large amount of interest, not just because of its location, but because of its history and significance for traditional music enthusiasts.

“It was built by Packie, who was himself a stonemason, about 70 years ago,” said the auctioneer in charge of the sale, John Casey.

“It is an absolutely fantastic location and Micho even had a recording studio going in the house 30 or 40 years ago, before something like that was ever heard of.”

With planning permission difficult to secure in the area it is unlikely that any major structural alterations would be allowed to take place. There had been concern in some quarters that the house, and the long history, might be lost to a modern development.

“It wouldn’t be right for someone to knock it, not just because of the lovely stonework, but also because of the history behind the building,” continued Mr Casey.

“Planning is restricted on that side of the road so it will offer someone a chance of a lovely home in an area where it is very difficult to build.”

The Russell family lived in Doonagore, near Doolin since before the Great Famine.

The music in the Russell family came from Micho’s mother Annie who played the concertina, while Micho’s brothers Packie and Gussie were both renowned musicians.

Micho first came to prominence when winning the All-Ireland tin whistle competition in 1973. He was renowned for his originality and inventiveness.

In the 1970s, he toured all over Europe and America and was a favourite at the Willie Clancy Summer School. He died tragically, as a result of a car accident, 12 years ago this week.

The house will be sold by public auction at the Falls Hotel on Friday March 10 at 3pm.

THE body charged with supplying and ensuring that 30,000 residents in the greater Ennis area have safe, clean drinking water increased its spend on bottled water by 50 per cent last year.

Figures released to The Clare People through the Freedom of Information Act, show that Clare County Council increased its spend on bottled water for its 900 staff by 50 per cent, from €13,723 in 2004 to €20,821 in 2005.

The massive increase in the spend on bottled water coincided with the county council, along with the Health Service Executive (HSE) and Ennis Town Council imposing three separate “boil notices” on the Ennis water supply last year.

A spokesman for the HSE confirmed yesterday that €26,000 was spent on bottled water at Ennis General Hospital.

“This is obviously an exceptionally high amount and is obviously connected to the problems with the water supply in Ennis,” he said.

Councillor Brian Meaney (GP) said yesterday: “the amount spent on bottled water by Clare County Council last year is yet another example of the loose attitude by the council towards taxpayers’ money.”

Cllr Meaney said that it was “ironic in the extreme that the organisation responsible for providing water to a safe, potable standard should increase its spend on a massive scale last year.

“The town council has consistently said that the water is as good as anywhere else in the country, but the employees and people ordering bottled water at the county council obviously don’t agree, if the amount spent on bottled water at the council last year is anything to go by.

“While the additional spend on water by the council is being funded by the tax-payer, what recompense is there for facilities across the greater Ennis area, including crèches and homes for the elderly, where there is no sign of any subvention coming from the state for the additional costs incurred?”

The costs for crèches and other facilities that look after the very young and those prone to infection, continues, as the partial ‘boil notice’ remains in place.

A temporary solution to the problem is expected to be in place by April while a new treatment plant is anticipated to be in place by October 2007. On a recent visit to Ennis, the Minister for the Environment, Dick Roche described as “nuts” the need for continuous boil notices in a town the size of Ennis.

THE country’s leading catering college has voluntarily agreed to move 84 students from two apartment blocks, which it leases in Shannon, to a local hotel, following a fire at the complex on Tuesday night

The blaze has raised serious concerns in the fire authority in Clare about the safety of the buildings.

The Shannon College of Hotel Management, which is governed by the Shannon Airport Authority, has moved the students from Hawthorns and Linden blocks at Drumgeely Flats, adjacent to Shannon Airport, to the nearby Great Southern Hotel, which is also owned by the Airport Authority.

The move follows an incident on Tuesday night last when a fire broke out in a flat at one of the blocks. No one was injured in the incident that is understood to have been caused by a fault in an electric shower. Following the fire however, concerns were expressed by the fire authority and the owner voluntarily made arrangements to vacate the block. Subsequently, a second building, also leased by the Shannon College of Hotel Management, was vacated by the college authorities.

A spokesperson for the Shannon Airport Authority has confirmed, “we were not forced to leave the flats, we took this decision ourselves in the interest of safety. The fire authority has been inspecting the flats and we await their final report. In the meantime the students are being accommodated in the Great Southern Hotel here at the airport.”

Clare’s Chief Fire Officer, Adrian Kelly, has confirmed that there are “some fire safety issues” with one of the blocks.

“We are inspecting both blocks, which have been vacated, and have been in touch with the management company. There are 12 blocks in all at Drumgeely, but we are not aware of any safety issues with the other 10. But we hope to inspect them also.”

Chief Kelly has confirmed, however, that the fire service is trying to establish ownership of the other buildings with a view to inspecting the blocks to ensure they meet current fire safety regulations. Mr Kelly also praised the college authorities for their cooperation and their speedy response to the safety concerns expressed.

THE office of the Director of Public Prosecutions will decide before March 9 what course of action it intends to pursue in the case of four peace activists arrested following a small protest at Shannon Airport last September, a court has been told.

The four defendants gained access to a balcony in the main terminal building at Shannon on September 17 last and managed to unfurl three anti-war banners. All four were arrested and taken to Shannon Garda Station where they were questioned, detained overnight and later charged before being taken to court the following day.

Reappearing at Shannon District Court in Ennis last Thursday were 38-year-old Conor Cregan of 42 Cronan Lawn, Shannon, and Niall Harnett aged 39, originally from Dublin, but living at the time in Liscannor. Both face one charge each of failing to obey directions from airport police officers contrary to Section 33 of the Air Navigation and Transport Act.

Two others, Margaret Liddy aged 34 from North Circular Road in Limerick and 21-year-old St John O’Donnabháin with an address at Áth Stúin in County Kilkenny, face charges of failing to provide names and address to airport police staff also contrary Section 33 of the same act.

The State claims that only Mr Cregan and Mr Harnett, were involved in the alleged incident on the balcony where airport police officers were prevented from entering the area.

Inspector Tom Kennedy sought to have the four remanded on continuing bail until March when, he told Judge Leo Malone, the DPP would have decided what course of action to take. It is understood that further charges may be preferred against any of the defendants

Two of the defendants, who represented themselves in court, attempted to address the court but were advised by Judge Malone that the matter had already been adjourned to March 9.

Niall Harnett was warned that he would be “held in contempt” and “removed from the court” after he began reading from a document in which he accused the justice system of “failing to engage” with him in all respects relevant to his case.

Conor Cregan also sought to address the court but was told by Judge Malone, “the problem with that is that the DPP has not yet directed in the matter.”

All four will appear in court again on March 9 next.

SENATOR Timmy Dooley (FF) has opened up a constituency office in Ennis just over a year before the current Dáil term expires.

With a Fianna Fáil party convention looming to nominate candidates for next year’s General Election, the 36-year old Mountshannon man has moved to up his profile by opening the office on Ennis’s Carmody Street.

Work was continuing on the fit-out of the office over last weekend before it formally opened yesterday (Monday).

“It is in response to the demand of work really that has considerably increased for me in the Ennis area”, said Senator Dooley.

“Up until now, I would be meeting people in hotels and bars so opening up the office makes things far easier. I have a secretary working in Dublin, but there will now be one working full-time at the Ennis office.”

Asked was the opening in any way connected to his campaign to secure a party nomination to run in next year’s General Election, Senator Dooley said: “No, not at all. That will be decided by delegates, that is their decision.”

Senator Dooley said that he took out the lease on the office last October and was planning not to open the premises until after the planned convention in early January.

“When the convention was postponed, I thought I could not wait any longer due to the inconvenience.”

Asked what kind of response he has been encountering in his campaign to secure a party nomination, Senator Dooley said, “It has been very, very good. I’m very, very happy with it.”

Commenting on the move, Fine Gael TD, Pat Breen said, “Senator Dooley obviously sees himself as a potential candidate for the next election and is seeking political advantage by opening up an office in the county capital.”

Senator Brendan Daly (FF) said: “The opening of the new office by Timmy is to be welcomed as it will provide further services to the public.

“I wonder just how effective constituency offices are. There were three in Ennis before the last general election and the candidate, James Breen, who didn’t have any office, polled 4,000 votes in Ennis.

“The demand for such offices is becoming less and less as the public receives a lot of information from the likes of the Citizen Information Bureau and other voluntary groups.”