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TWELVE Ennis based _ scuba divers stranded in Cuba since be- ing caught up in the aftermath of Hurricane Wilma, which pounded the Caribbean island at the week- end, are hopeful of returning home later today.

Following a ten hour drive from their base in Cayo Coco to the Cuban capital on Saturday, the group remained in an airport ho- tel last night awaiting confirma- tion of whether their Air France flight would be allowed take off for lake

The 12 strong group, all mem- bers Ennis Sub Aqua Club, left Ire- land on October 13th on a twelve day trip which included several days diving on Cuba’s Atlantic and Caribbean coasts. On Saturday, at the end of their holiday, their inter- nal flight to Havana was cancelled forcing the group to embark on a dangerous ten hour road trip to the

capital. The group finally arrived safely at their airport hotel on Sat- urday night however their flight to Paris on Sunday was cancelled be- cause of the storm.

Speaking from Havana last night, Brian Keogh from Newmarket on Fergus said, “The eye of the hurri- cane passed just 60 kilometres off the coast. The west of the country was affected worst but we were safe enough. It was very windy alright and our internal flight from Coya Coco was cancelled so we had to drive for over ten hours to Havana only to find out that our flight to Paris was cancelled as well.”

Cuba was fortunate to escape the worst of Hurricane Wilma al- though over 600,000 people were ordered by the government to evac- uate their homes particularly on the western side of the island. Yester- day (Monday), as Wilma reached Florida, waves churned up in her wake pounded the Cuban capital

of Havana flooding a highway and penetrating four blocks into nearby neighbourhoods.

“We are safe where we are and everyone is in good form. I don’t think we were in any real danger. We have had to stay an extra night in the hotel,’ said Mr Keogh as he surveyed the scene from his room. “We escaped the worst of it and at the moment it looks more like a bad winter’s day in Lahinch. The waves are high and it is very windy. We are still waiting to hear whether it is too windy for our flight to leave,” he said.

Earlier this year, the club do- nated all the proceeds of its annual flag day to the Tsunami relief fund. The money was sent to a boat yard in Sri Lanka where a small fish- ing boat was built, fitted with an engine and fishing nets and then donated on behalf of the club to a fishing family in Sri Lanka.

THE promoters of the US-owned Doonbeg Golf Club remained upbeat this week on the project’s future and performance to date in spite of the venture accumulating losses of €15.9 million since its inception.

Accounts for 2004 recently re- turned to the Companies Office show an accumulated loss of €15.9 million, including a loss of €3.2 million last year.

However, the losses will be wiped from the accounts next year when the golf club will show a sub- stantial profit when the sales from the luxury suites from The Lodge

appear in the accounts.

The golf club confirmed that 45 of the 47 one to four bedroom luxury suites currently under con- struction have been sold and this is expected to generate an estimated €30 million, with a number of the suites selling for €1.6 million.

The figures show that the US- backers of the project have invest- ed €37.5 million in the project, resulting in the company’s balance sheet showing a positive balance of €29 million even with the loss of €15.9 million taken into account.

Also, the figures show that the golf club’s legal adviser and com- pany director, Ennis-based solic1-

tor, Des Houlihan has been paid €262,856 in legal expenses in me

According to a company spokes- man, “Doonbeg Golf Club project is on budget and on schedule…The project has more than lived up to expectations and the feedback from those playing the course and investing in the suites has been un- reservedly positive.”

He said: “The Lodge, along with the all of the major facili- ties, including the clubhouse, the pro-shop, the restaurants/bars, the spa and the accommodation are on schedule to be completed early in the New Year.”

AN open verdict has been returned in the inquest into the death of a fa- ther and son who drowned on a west Clare farm earlier this year.

The Coroner’s Court heard that Michael Cunningham (41), a fitter and his 10-year-old son James, from Knockbrack, Clonlara, were help- ing out on Michael’s brother Kevin’s farm at Eirebull, Labasheeda, when they disappeared on March 28 last

Both bodies were recovered from a quarry hole on the farm, by mem- bers of the Athlone sub-aqua diving club and Kilkee Marine Rescue, at 7.30pm that evening.

Garda Michael Ryan said a fork was located in the place where the two had been feeding cattle and adjacent to that was a large quarry

hole. There was a small scuff mark but nothing else to suggest anything was wrong.

Dr Elizabeth Mulchay performed an autopsy on both bodies at Lim- erick Regional Hospital. She con- cluded that the deaths were due to drowning.

Coroner Isobel O’Dea said the in- cident was a “very sad and unfortu- nate double tragedy.

‘Probably one of them fell into the quarrry and the other went into save him but we don’t know. Nobody saw anything happen,” said Ms O’Dea.

Sympathies were extended to the family of the deceased and tributes were paid to those who assisted in the recovery of the bodies, by both the Coroner and Inspector Tom Kennedy.

A NORTH Clare solicitor has been is- sued a warning letter under the Planning Acts over a two-storey extension alleg- edly built without planning permission on Ennistymon’s Parliament Street.

Clare County Council has served Ju- dith Foley c/o Chamber & Co Solicitors of Parliament Street, Ennistymon in respect of an alleged unauthorised de- velopment in the town’s Architectural Conservation Area (ACA).

The letter to Ms Foley states: “I am to inform you that it has come to the attention of Clare County Council that unauthorised development is_ being carried out namely the construction of a two-storey extension in an ACA at Parliament Street without the benefit of planning permission.

The letter continues: “The council considers the development to be unau- thorised as it does not have the benefit

of planning permission and does not constitute exempted development.

You are required to cease unauthor- ised works and remove unauthorised development.

The letter adds that any person found guilty of carrying out an unauthorised development shall be liable on sum- mary conviction to a fine not exceeding a Oe

Ms Foley has been invited to make submission in writing to the council within the next four weeks. It will be open to Ms Foley to lodge plans with the council to retain the development.

The issuing of the Warning Letter to Ms Foley is part of increased policing of alleged unauthorised developments in Clare. Earlier this year, the Council’s Director of Service for Planning, Liam Conneally said that 900 notices had been issued since 2001.

Ms Foley was unavailable for com- ment this week.

A FORMER Scariff-based Garda ser- geant has asked a High Court judge to quash a decision by the Garda Siochana Complaints Tribunal requiring him to re- sign from the force.

The decision relating to Garda Ciaran Sheehan was made seven years ago fol- lowing a hearing by the tribunal into al- legations of ‘oppressive conduct’ by the Garda, who was then a Sergeant, towards a member of the public.

Garda Sheehan, who was once ‘top of his class,’ brought his judicial review proceedings against the Garda Siochana Complaints Tribunal and the Garda Sio- chana Complaints Board. Both respond- ents have rejected claims of unfair proce- dures and breach of rights.

Gda Sheehan wants an order quashing a decision of the Complaints Tribunal on June 8, 1998. He also wants an order quashing the breach of discipline find- ing.

The tribunal hearings arose after a com- plaint by Patrick Teddy Connolly from Scariff about an incident alleged to have occurred on September 12, 1995, outside a petrol filing station. It was alleged that then Sgt Sheehan engaged in oppressive conduct towards Mr Connolly, outside Treacy’s filling station, Scarriff.

It was alleged the then Sergeant ap- proached Mr Connolly and questioned

him about a statement Mr Connolly had made to a Garda Inspector concerning an investigation by that inspector, in which Sgt Sheehan was the member concerned.

It was alleged that, having questioned Mr Connolly, Sgt Sheehan acted in an in- timidatory manner in checking the wind- screen of his car for tax and insurance and in checking the condition of his tyres.

Mark Connaughton SC for Mr Shee- han, argued the inquiry conducted by the tribunal into the allegations was ‘tainted with illegality’ and that the tribunal had no jursidiction to act as it had.

It was contended a decision of the Com- plaints Board by itself and/or in conjunc- tion with the complaints tribunal, to delay the tribunal hearing into the complaint by Mr Connolly until after the conclusion of an internal sworn inquiry under Garda discipinary regulations regarding other matters alleged by Mr Connolly to have occurred in March 1996, was in excess of the provsions of the Garda Complaints Act 1986. It was following the latter in- quiry that Sgt Sheehan was demoted to the rank of Garda.

It was argued that the delay in holding the tribunal hearing breached the appli- cant.s rights to natural and constitutional justice, fairness of procedures and due process.

The hearing before Mr Justice Roder- ick Murphy is expected to conclude today Gheer oF

A SECOND-YEAR female student at St Flan- nan’s College in Ennis was hospitalised with severe facial burns after being hit by a lighted firework at the weekend.

Groups of students were waiting to be col- lected after school on Friday when a firework was lobbed into a crowd, close to the gates of the school.

The object hit a young girl on the collar of her jacket and it caught fire, resulting in her being burned in the face.

She was hospitalised and treated for her burns, before being discharged.

A 15-year-old youth was interviewed by gardai and a number of others are due to be questioned this week. However, gardai are stressing that there was no malicious intent.

“We are very happy that it was no-one’s in- tention to cause injury to anyone but this shows the dangers of fireworks. They are going off all over the town at the moment,” said Ennis Supt John Kerin, who is leading the investigation into the incident outside the school.

He is encouraging parents to take action, to ensure others are not harmed by illegal fire- works and said children do not appreciate the dangers of such objects.

“They are highly dangerous. I greatly fear that, unless parents and other people take action, others will get hurt. Parents may not realise fireworks are illegal. We are advising parents to come into the garda station with fireworks or if they know where they are being stored to come and tell us. . . it will prevent further injury or loss of life,” he added.

He confirmed that gardai have made up to

40 minor seizures of fireworks during the past week alone, in Ennis. One concerned parent who contacted

THE Bishop of Killaloe, Dr Willie Walsh has agreed to meet residents demanding that En- nis Council increases the height of the walls surrounding their estate to 8 foot, before the Council proceeds with plans to build an adja- cent scheme of social and affordable houses.

The houses are to be built on land that the bishop sold to the council for €1.5 million five years ago.

The Bishop’s Court residents want the coun- cil to ensure that only people with “proven records’ on housing are placed in the new Westbourne estate.

They also want security lighting to be fitted

and the council to carry out repairs, “should anti-social behaviour become an issue”’.

In the €10 million scheme, the Council is seeking planning permission to develop 82 so- cial and affordable residential units.

Dr Walsh this week confirmed that he is to meet the residents after a request from the as- sociation to discuss their submission to the Council. He said: “I haven’t studied the sub- mission in detail and would be reluctant at this stage to comment on it. It is an emotive issue.”

Bishop Walsh’s predecessor, Bishop Michael Harty sold lands at the Westbourne estate to a private developer who built Bishop’s Court. Dr Walsh said that he may comment on the issue after meeting with the residents.

, but was very excited to be part of a centre of excel- lence.

The Carrigoran Hospital already provides 26 beds in an inpatient dementia unit.

Cllr Pat McMahon said that the service in Carrigoran would not just benefit Newmaket- on-Fergus but Shannon, Sixmilebridge, Quinn and Ennis.

The report on the development of dementia services in Clare set out a number of plans for an area of growing demand, in view of the age- ing of the population in the county.

Among the services recommended was the development of dementia specific day services at various locations within existing day centers in the county. This will be achieved through the extension of services at these centers or the provision of extra services at weekends.

The Old Age Psychiatry Team in Clare will also be enhanced.

CLARE County Councillors last night voiced their concern over the disruptive impact that moving the local authority’s offices around En- nis was having on Council business.

Last night, at the council’s October meeting, County Manager, Alec Fleming said that he hoped the council would be in a position to sign the contract for the €27.44 million works for the provision of a new Corporate Headquarters in the next couple of weeks.

The new HQ — to be built on the council’s former site at New Road, Ennis — is expected to be ready in 2007 and until then, council depart-

ments have been dispersed to various parts of Ennis.

Construction work on the HQ was due to com- mence in June, but was delayed due to negotia- tions between the council and the contractor, Michael McNamara.

Councillors from three separate electoral ar- eas, Cllr Brian Meaney, Cllr Christy Curtin and Cllr Martin Lafferty expressed concern over the impact the dispersal of the council’s offices is having on the services the council provides.

Cllr Lafferty said: “It is a great inconvenience to have different departments in different areas of Ennis. It is particularly affecting staff and council members.”

FOLLOWING the worrying news of positive tests for birds in Turkey and Romania with Avian Influenza the Minister for Agriculture and Food Mary Coughlan TD has announced a number of controlling initiatives in what she described as ‘a measured response.’

Firstly Minister Coughlan has welcomed the EU ban on all imports of live birds and untreated feathers from the countries and noted that imports of live poultry, eggs and fresh poultry meat from Turkey were already banned.

She has instructed her officials to request the assist- ance of Customs and Excise officers to provide further

support for her Department’s efforts at border inspection posts and she has arranged for the deployment of addi- tional Departmental resources at Dublin airport.

The Department has also issued detailed information to poultry flockowners on measures to reduce the risk of the introduction of Avian influenza into Ireland has published updated advice for travellers to and from af- fected countries.

Officials from the Department also met with colleagues from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland to co-ordinate their strategies.

Avian Influenza has seen millions of chickens being culled in Asia with almost 60 people dying as a result of the flu.