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THE number of cases of a potentially life-threatening infection has trebled in the region in the last year.

Figures from the HSE show that a 200 per cent increase in the number of VTEC E.coli infections notified in Ireland during the first half of 2012 compared with the same period in 2011. This increase comes on top of continual increased incidence rates since 2005.

In the Mid West region alone Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary – the number of cases reported during the first six months of this year had reached 40.

Concern relating to the increase in infection, especially in rural areas, has resulted in the HSE forming a multi-agency expert group to deal with the outbreak.

The agency is made up of the Department of Health, the Department of Agriculture and Food, the HSE, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, safefood, Teagasc, the Environmental Protection Agency and local authorities and will look at both short term and medium term actions to deal with this problem. Actions will include the roll out of awareness campaigns for the public, farming communities and childcare facilities as well as on-going liaison with these groups.

Dr Patrick O’Sullivan, Director of Public Health, HSE Mid-West explained, “VTEC is a germ that can cause infection if swallowed and usually causes a mild illness. Most people recover completely without any problems.

“However, VTEC produces a toxin that may damage the bowel wall causing severe bloody diarrhoea. In about five to eight per cent of cases, the infection causes a life-threatening complication called haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS).

“In HUS, the red blood cells are destroyed and kidney failure occurs. Up to nine per cent of people who develop HUS following VTEC infection die. HUS is more likely to occur in children aged under five and the elderly.

“Part of this year’s increase is explained by improved sensitivity of laboratory testing methods and most cases have occurred in rural areas,” he said.

More than half the cases of VTEC are in children under the age of five, while 13 cases of VTEC associated HUS.

The public can help prevent the spread of VTEC by carefully washing hands, ensuring well water supplies are chlorinated or ultraviolet treated before using for drinking, preparing food and brushing teeth.

VTEC is killed by heat so meat should be fully cooked.

THE vast majority of people currently engaged in serious criminal activity in Kilrush are either in custody or before the courts, a meeting has heard.

Chief Supt of the Clare Garda Division, John Kerin was speaking at yesterday’s meeting of the Clare Joint Policing Committee where he provided a detailed breakdown of the level of crime that has occurred in Kilrush for the first 29 days of July.

The figures show that were three burglaries, five incidents of criminal damage, 10 public order offences, one fraud offence, 31 thefts, three thefts from vehicles and one theft of a bike.

There were also two offences under the firearms and offensive weap- ons act relating to the seizure of an iron bar and a crossbow.

In addition, Chief Supt Kerin stated that 410 drugs seizures and 114 garda checkpoints were carried out in Kilrush in July.

Acknowledging that there is an issue with drugs in Kilrush, Chief Supt Kerin said these activities are largely restricted to a “hardcore group of 10 people”.

He continued, “Ninety-five per cent of the people involved in crime in Kilrush are either in custody or before the courts.”

He told the meeting that garda numbers in Kilrush had not fallen as much as those in other parts of the county.

“There are a lot of good, young gardaí in Kilrush. It might take a bit of time for them to get the experience but there are definitely more gardaí living in West Clare now than there was when I came here first.”

Referring to recent reports and comments made about crime in Kilrush, Chief Supt Kerin said, “Sometimes we have to be careful about comments we are making. They can impact on tourism and they don’t do justice to the situation on the ground.”

Fine Gael TD for Clare, Deputy Pat Breen told the meeting he was glad that the situation in Kilrush had been clarified.

He said, “Obviously there are incidents from time to time. It’s not nice for someone to find an intruder in their home. But it is confined to a small number of people.”

He praised the work of Supt Gerry Wall and all gardaí in Kilrush.

West Clare councillor Oliver Garry (FG) said crime could not be solved without the input of the local community.

A MAJOR row has er upted in Nor th Clare over plans by Clare Count y Council to excavate stones from a public beach just nor th of Lahinch.

A local woman has blasted what she has labelled “illegal” plans to privatise a section of Cregg Beach, while a local representative has tabled a motion before Clare County Council that the works be carried out “to allow public access to the beach”.

The stand-off sparked by the oneperson protest waged by Maura Lehane has resulted in work at the beach – which lies at the southern end of Lahinch on the Miltown Malbay road – being halted.

Excavation work began on Saturday, July 21 at Cregg Beach at the southern end of Lahinch village.

“I saw what was happening,” revealed Ms Lehane.

“The excavation of the sea stones was going on for a considerable length of time and I could see a visible difference.

“A machine driver was using a track machine to alter the course of the River Moy and, if this work continued, it would have resulted in the flow of the river running through the centre of the beach. I could see that if this work was allowed to continue, the southern part of Cregg Beach would be lost to the public – at least half the beach would be privatised,” she added

“It is a contentious issue,” admitted local councillor, Bill Slattery (FG) “and it is one that has to be resolved. What was being done was to provide access for the general public to the beach.

“The work has now been stopped and it is gone back to the county council and the engineers will deal with it.

“This work has to be done to allow the public have access to the beach and this has to be resolved,” added Cllr Slattery.

“That fact that there was no engineer or safety officer on site or any signs of warning of work on the beach shocked me, not to mention the untold damage they have done to our beautiful beach,”said Ms Lehane.

“I am aghast that our beautiful coastline would be touched to such a degree.

“It is imperative that this situation is rectified immediately and the beach returned to its natural state,” she added.

CLARE’S top Garda has told residents of areas plagued by anti-social behaviour to come forward or “shut up” and “suffer the consequences”.

Chief Supt of the Clare Garda Division John Kerin said the gardaí can only act if people who witness antisocial and criminal acts come forward with information.

Residents groups in Ennis and other parts of the county have publicised issues that have arisen in their areas in recent weeks.

However, Chief Supt Kerin queried yesterday why people are not reporting matters directly to gardaí.

“People are ringing the radio but they won’t ring the guards,” he said.

He challenged communities and individuals to “step up to the mark” to help gardaí clamp down on anti-social behaviour.

“They either report it or shut up about it, do nothing and suffer the consequences,” he added.

Chief Supt Kerin said gardaí treat these matters seriously and all reports would be followed up.

He was speaking at yesterday’s meeting of the Clare Joint Police Committee Meeting (JPC) at the headquarters of Clare County Council in Ennis.

His comments come in the wake of a number of recently reported incidences of anti-social behaviour in Ennis.

At a recent meeting of Ennis Town Council, an anonymous letter detailing anti-social behaviour in an Ennis

estate was read out to stunned

members.

There has also been much

focus in recent weeks relat

ing to ongoing concerns in

Kilrush, connected with

moneylending and drugs

in the West Clare town.

A CLAREMAN’S obsession with rally driving is set to be showcased on the international stage in the next year, thanks to a documentary film that’s being shot about the Clare Stages Rally.

Miltown Malbay man Eddie Cogan is the subject of the documentary called ‘Fast Eddie’ that filmmaker Neil Hynes says “follows a man’s passion for the sport and a dream to win the Clare Stages Rally” – the flagship motor race in the county that takes place this coming September.

The idea was born when Hynes, who also hails from Miltown Malbay, discovered Cogan’s passion for the sport of rallying five years ago and made a short film about his preparations for an event.

“I decided to come back again and do a bigger production by following the adventures of a man, as he deals with life and prepares a car and himself for the Clare Stages competition.

“The film is not just about the motor sports; it’s an observation of the people involved in it and what makes them tick.

“The film follows Cogan’s pursuits in the run up to the event. His workplace and private life are all in the mix as we get to see a man wheel and deal, beg and borrow for a chance to try and finish first,” he added.

Hynes has put together an experience and varied production team for the documentary. His cameraman is Polish native Domink Koisci, who performed camera work on the Rubberbandits hit video ‘Horse Outside’.

Others involved are Miriam Garcia Mortell, who was production assistant on the Pat Shortt film ‘Mattie’ and Ronan Cassidy is on sound, having just produced a documentary on the rugby scene in Limerick that has aired both in Ireland and America.

“It’s heading for film festivals once it’s completed and we hope to secure distribution both here and abroad,” said Mr Hynes.

THEY are the most famous ceilí band in the world but this Saturday night, the Kilfenora Ceilí Band are in their home county to play in a oneoff ceili at the West County Hotel in Ennis.

The gig, which will feature set dancing will start at 10pm and run for three hours, with the entire famed group in attendance.

The cast of talented musicians have been playing traditional music for over a century, but as band leader John Lynch explains, it’s always a pleasure for them to play in their home county:

“It’s where you’re from and where you grew up so you enjoy coming back (to play in Clare).”

Indeed, the attendance at the band’s ceilís and concerts within the county has been phenomenal over the past year as the band’s ‘gigging’ appearances in Clare can be rare.

Over 800 attended the sold out event at the West County last year while over 600 attended both ceilis during Willie Clancy Week.

The level of interest is something Lynch and the band “appreciate so much” and audiences have been huge at each of their five events in Clare so far this year.

Lynch enjoys playing at both concerts and ceilis but for different reasons:

“At ceilís, the audience are on the floor dancing sets and there is a great atmosphere and response from the crowd.

“On the other hand, we can arrange pieces and harmonies much more easily at concerts as the audience are in their seats listening.”

He adds that Saturday’s concert will include music from past and present:

“You have some people there who have listened to previous bands so we want to play some of the older music to please them.

“On the other hand, we want to show that we are progressing with new material. And of course we want to get people out dancing!”

A member of The Kilfenora Ceilí band for 20 years, Lynch, who plays the banjo, says that there is a “little bit of tension before an event” but as soon as you begin to play, “the music takes hold.”

There are still a few tickets remaining for Saturday night’s show in the West County (tickets are € 15 apiece), they can be purchased at reception.

CLARE’S Fine Gael TDs gave assurances that the county council will be reimbursed all of its Local Government funding, but only if it brings its household tax compliance to above “70 or 75 per cent”.

County Clare has the third most compliant taxpayers in the country when it comes to the household charge, yet last week when the county manager went to the council’s bank account he noticed it was almost a quarter of a million euros short.

The Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Phil Hogan had withheld € 243,000 of the General Purpose Grant Allocation of the Local Government Fund for the third quarter of the year.

The council also learnt that its over stretched staff will be taking over the collection of the household charge for this year, a role that is expected to be passed on to Revenue in 2013.

Clare County Manager, Tom Coughlan said that the local authority had not received any database to date from the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA) so the authority does not know who has paid or has yet to pay the € 100- plus fines now incurred.

Mr Coughlan explained that when the council balanced its budget for this year, it did not make provision for this unexpected cut to its fund. Cuts had already been made to council spending at the beginning of the year so that it could balance the books, and there is very little “discretionary spending” left, he explained.On Friday last, councillors agreed at a hastily convened meeting that they would continue to spend as per the agreed budget.

They were critical of the minister for taking money out of its annual budget seven months into the year, and argued that any cuts should wait until 2013.

Cllr Christy Curtin (Ind) said, “I do not support any reduction in services. I do not support any financial cutback at this stage of the year. If the minister wants to make changes, he can tell us what he wants us to do in 2013 and we will deal with it then. But to force a reduction in the middle of 2012 when we have our budget passed and we are halfway through the financial year is certainly not acceptable.”

In his address to councillors, Deputy Pat Breen (FG) said the lost € 243,000 would be returned to the council’s coffers. “You will get back what is owed to you before the end of the year. I don’t think the council should worry about that,” he said.

“The money is not being cut, it is being with-held,” added Deputy Carey (FG). “We don’t have to face the cuts if we get the allocation up to 70 to 75 per cent. I got that assurance from Phil Hogan,” he added.

Deputy Breen said the whole purpose was to encourage local authorities to give one last push to get the money. “This money is not a cutback. It is an initiative to collect finances.” he said.

This is an initiative the council must currently face without any direction as to who has paid and who has not.

NOT all members of Clare County Council have paid the € 100 household charge – a charge the Government says is to support local services. Some of their colleagues believe they should not benefit from the council coffers until they pay up.

In the last week, the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Phil Hogan, withheld almost a quarter of a million euro of funds owed to Clare County Council as just 62 per cent of the county’s householders have registered for the controversial charge.

One of the 28 per cent who have not yet paid in Clare is Shannon’s Cllr Gerry Flynn (Ind).

Cllr James Breen (Ind) is also firmly against the charge but would not say yesterday (Monday) if he had paid the charge.

“I believe this is a very penal tax. People are not able to pay for food and they are being asked to pay € 100. There are people living on € 15 a week when all the bills are paid, “ he said.

The former TD was adamant, however, that he had not encouraged people to avoid the tax. He said he told his supporters to make up their own minds on the issue.

“At this point and time, I am not saying whether I paid it or not. For now all I am saying is that it is a personal matter between me and my wife,” he added. “I will represent people who have paid and people who have not paid it equally and impartially as I have done for the last 25 years in politics,” he said.

Cllr Flynn, however, has made a conscious decision not to pay the charge. The Shannon councillor said he sat down with his family and supporters and made a conscious decision not to pay.

“I had information that the € 100 fee is for data collection for the minister that will then be sent on to revenue for home tax,” he said. “The € 100 was never meant to be a tax. This is my own free choice. It is not that I could not pay. I do not encourage or discourage anyone to pay,” he told

TWO branches of AIB in Clare will close in October.

Ironically, both branches will close in West Clare, the homeland of Head of Branch Banking, Denis O’Callaghan.

Late last week, the bank announced that it was closing its branches in Kilkee and Kildysart as it reorganises its branch network.

The Kilkee branch was opened five days a week, servicing the tour- ist town.

It was manned by two staff members from the Kilrush branch compliment, who will now be absorbed again by the main branch.

The Kildysart branch was opened just three days a week and its two staff members will return to work in the main Ennis branch of the bank.

Mary Arthur from AIB Kilkee explained that the changes would come into affect from October 26, when the Kilkee branch will locate to Frances Street in Kilrush.

“I know that you (the customer) may be disappointed to see your branch closing but I want to assure you that we will be making every effort to minimise any disruption and inconvenience to you.

“Staff from your branch will move to Kilrush, transferring all account records, so from your point of view; you will not have to change anything.

All your account numbers, cheque books, direct debits, standing orders, ATM/debit cards and any credit facilities and terms on these facilities will remain exactly the same.

“If you have any questions, just ask one of the team, we will be happy to help,” she said.

Margaret Burns, AIB Kildysart, said that the Kildysart branch would move to Ennis.

Customers’ details will also transfer automatically to Ennis.

“All customers will receive a letter from us.

“If you are a business customer, one of our SME Specialists will be available to help you with all your business banking arrangements,” she said.

THE summer sun finally reached the Banner county on Friday, but the heat from the long-awaited sunshine paled to insignificance next to the heat in the council chamber.

Members of Clare County Council had gathered to discuss the withholding of funds from the General Purpose Grant Allocation of the Local Government Fund for 2012.

While council were already irritated by the fact that Minister for the Environment, Phil Hogan, had with-held € 243,000 from the third quarterly payment to the council, it was a letter of apology from Clare TD Michael McNamara (Lab) that he could not attend that caused the greatest uproar.

Cllr Cathal Crowe (FF) was critical of the letter claiming that it was “pedantic and arrogant”.

“There is no explanation as to why he can’t be here,” he said.

Cllr Patricia McCarthy (Ind) took exception to what the youngest member of the council said.

“Do not forget who invited in the troika. Do not forget the people who had to pick up the pieces of this country in the last few years, and do not forget now who are suffering for what was done,” she said. “So be mindful when you are casting aspersions across the chamber at people who are not here and who outlined the situation as it is.”

Cllr Crowe then shouted across the chamber, claiming Deputy McNamara was a party colleague of the independent councillor.

“No, he is not a party colleague of mine. This is where you are going wrong, Cllr Cathal Crowe,” said Cllr McCarthy.

“You wear a red rose when it suits you,” he interjected.

Mayor Pat Daly attempted to bring the meeting to order as Cllr McCarthy clarified, “I am not a member of the Labour Party, I have not been a member of the Labour Party since 1986. I support a certain deputy in this county,” she said.

In the course of a loud and heated “discussion”, Cllr Crowe said he found elements of Cllr McCarthy’s argument “hard to believe”.

She in turn asked for an apology for insinuating she was lying.

“I did not call her a liar,” he replied.

He concluded that he believed he was within his rights to condemn Deputy McNamara’s “arrogance” and said he did not think he was alone in that.

Deputy McNamara told The Clare People that in his letter he outlined his stance on the issue as he could not be in attendance.

He said he, like all of the Government and the Seanad, voted for the charge as it was outlined in the IMF bail-out document, a document he added to his letter so as to be helpful and support his point.

“It was pointing out the realities. You can’t have councillors speaking out of both sides of their mouths, saying no funds for local government and then not supporting raising the funds.”

During the meeting, the County Manager Tom Coughlan was also less than impressed when it was implied that the executive had been dragging its heels when it came to paying the charge at the council offices.

Cllr Joe Arkins (FG) said that in the run up to the original deadline for the payment, there were issues with council officials stating that they could not take postal payments and later letters without stamps.

“I don’t think they were overly helpful in assisting the Local Government Management Agency. We were behaving like an organisation scorned. I don’t think we had our shoulder to the wheel,” he said.

Jumping to the defence of his employees, Mr Coughlan said they had made every effort to facilitate the payment of the charge, so much so that Clare had one of the highest compliance rates in the country.

After almost an hour of councillors airing their grievances on the issue, West Clare County Councillor Pat Keane (FF) left the council chamber in anger. The councillor was frustrated at the way the meeting was progressing, with some councillors getting to speak on a number of occasions while others, he felt, were over looked.

Later in the meeting, Mayor Daly apologised to Cllr Keane, stating that he was up to speak at that point but was no longer in the chamber.