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A HOAX emergency call that sparked a major search operation around Ennis last week is now the subject of a criminal investigation.

The River Fergus was the focus of the two-hour search after a call was received of a person entering the water in the Woodquay area of the town.

A number of services including the Gardaí, Kilkee Coast Guard, Doolin Coast Guard, Clare Fire Services and the Health Services Executive (HSE) attended the search while Clare Civil Defence were on standby.

No one was recovered from the water and there were no definite sightings of a person in the river. Gardaí had not received any report of a missing person.

Emergency services were already stretched having earlier attended the scene of an accident in Ennis where a van crashed through the front entrance of a shop.

Gardaí are now investigating the call after receiving a complaint from the Clare Fire Services.

Inspector Tom Kennedy confirmed Gardaí are looking into the matter. “Hoax calls can sometimes be about chimney fires or things like that but it is very unusual to get one to say that a person has jumped into the river. This involved all the emergency services. The Civil Defence were on standby. It was very dangerous.”

A coast guard helicopter was on the scene within 20 minutes. The search was coordinated by gardaí and involved up to 30 coast guard officers, 14 fire services personnel, paramedics and advanced paramedics.

Coast guard helicopter call outs cost an estimated € 5,000 an hour while the estimated cost of fire services involvement on the night runs to almost € 2,000.

The coast guard were tasked with the call at 9.10pm and the search was stood down following extensive consultation at 11pm.

Chief fire officer for Clare, Adrian Kelly described the hoax call as “madness”.

“The cost is one thing but the more important thing is safety,” he added.

Head of Clare Civil Defence Liam Griffin said the presence of so many people around the river on a night when weather conditions were poor made the situation more dangerous.

“It’s unheard of that you’d have that many people in the town on a Wednesday night. There is an inherent danger in having that many people around water.

“We have no issue responding to any emergency call but situations like this put severe strain on the emergency services,” explained Martony Vaughan, Officer in Charge of Kilkee Coast Guard.

A SIXMILEBRIDGE woman who left Ireland for London when she was just 15 has been honoured for her work with vulnerable children’s in London’s East End.

Sister Mary Lawrence received the Irish Youth Foundation’s fourth annual Nessa O’Neill award at the charity’s prestigious Hibernian Hero Award ceremony.

The Clare nun joined the Convent of Mercy in Stepney soon after she arrived in England, and spent her novice days in North London before returning to the East End of the city.

Sister Mary Lawrence, who is now 82-years-old and battling some ill health, told The Clare People that she came from a family of seven. Three of her four sisters also joined convents, one in Texas, and one in Malta and one sister joined the Salesians in Limerick. A fourth sister became a nun and married in London.

Both of her brothers joined An Garda Síochana in Dublin. Her cousins continue to live in Sixmilebridge but her nieces and nephews live in other parts of the country and other countries.

Sister Mary Lawrence has dedicated her life to helping the youth of the London for more than 40 years.

Just over 45 years ago the parish priest of the area came to the convent asking for a club to be formed to help children, many of Irish decent, you were living in difficult circumstances.

The 11-Plus Club was formed and Sister Mary Lawrence was its leader for 41 years.

She eventually changed the name of the club to the St John Bosco Youth Club, named after the saint who dedicated his life to poor children.

The Clare nun has won many awards for her efforts over the years, and her latest accolade comes from a charity, which offers financial assistance to the club, to allow it to continue its vital work.

A WEST Clare farmer was ordered to sell all his livestock and sentenced to 10 months in prison after a district court judge heard “horrific evidence” of animal cruelty.

Judge Patrick Durcan said Patrick Shannon (60) of Carnaculla, Kilrush, had caused “great cruelty” to the cattle on his farm and the reputation of the agricultural industry.

He ordered that Mr Shannon’s herd of 75 cattle be disposed of within 28 days as he “did not want to cause and further suffering to these animals”.

The court heard that the married father of three had used an extreme form of strip grazing that left animals gnawing with the hunger.

Despite the intervention of the Department of Agriculture for more than a decade, the West Clare farmer could not see the error of his ways, the court was told.

Vincent Lambert, Veterinary surgeon and veterinary inspector with the Department of Agriculture gave examples of cows and calves held in “paddock” areas surrounded by electric fences with no feed, water, shelter, or comfortable place to lie, during a visit to the farm on November 1, 2012. He said the paddocks were bare and it was obvious that the animals had reached under the fence to access grass outside.

He also gave an example of nine weanlings in a cubical shed with no feed or water and the animals were very thin.

“Mr Shannon arrived and provided three bags of weathered grass mainly rushes. It has a very poor nutritional value,” said Mr Lambert. The vet said he had explained that he had seen animal cruelty and Mr Shannon agreed that it was as he described but saw nothing wrong with it. There were 122 bales of silage on the farm on that date. He returned the following day and found the fences extended slightly in some fields and feed for some animals but no water. “One animal was on its knees trying to reach outside of the fence and receiving electric shock from the fence,” he said. When Mr Lambert and his colleagues returned to the farm again in December 11, 2012, they found scenes of thin animals gnawing with the hunger, with some animals so undernourished that their growth was stunted. He told the court the “Mr Shannon does not accept animals should walk on what they eat and should eat under the fence. “Since 2003 we have dealt with Mr Shannon and this is the way he farms. Mr Shannon doesn’t see anything wrong with this.” Solicitor for the defence John Casey said that his client “genuinely cares about these animals but it is misguided”. He said that Mr Shannon has a fear of the animals grazing on grass on which they walk. “He believes if they eat wet grass it will make them cold from the inside out,” he said. “The worst penalty that could happen to him would be to have these animals taken from him. Yes it is his livelihood and income, but I feel the loss of these animals would have a severe impact on him.” Judge Durcan suspended the jail term for two years and set recognisance in case of appeal.

THE Cliffs of Moher is on target to record its largest even number of visitors in 2013, with a prospect of breaking the one million barrier now a realistic possibility.

A surge in individual visitors in late summer has seen the North Clare tourist site surpass all predictions made for tourism numbers this year. The Cliffs of Moher Visitors Experience had already recorded a sizable year-on-year increase in the number of tour groups visiting in 2013, and the recent surge of individual tourists has pushed the visitors numbers into record territory.

According to Katherine Webster of the Cliffs of Moher Visitors Experience, the increase has been largely driven by tourists from America and mainland Europe.

“At this stage I can confirm that the Cliffs of Moher Visitor Experience is on target to exceed our record figure of 940,000 visitors which was reached in 2007, the year the new visitor centre opened,” she told The Clare People yesterday.

“Visitor numbers to the end of October are up by 9 percent on the same period last year. Group tours are ahead by 14 per cent and individual visitors by 4 percent.

“We’ve seen strong growth out of the North American and German markets with other continental European markets also performing well. The impact of the Gathering has definitely been noticeable.

“Our Family Names of County Clare project has been very popular with local visitors from Clare and has also evoked a great response from overseas visitors. The Clare Family Names exhibit will be retained and further names will be added in 2014.”

The increase in individual tourist numbers in particular is a welcome boost for the Clare tourism industry. The Cliffs of Moher are seen as a barometer to the overall health of tourism in Clare, with the the individual visitor number being key as group tours are more likely to base their holiday in Dublin and Galway, rather than in Burren itself.

ENNIS Town Council was last week named Town/Borough Council of the Year at the Chambers Ireland Excellence in Local Government Awards, held in association with the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government.

In a further coup for Clare local authorities, the Clare County Councilnominated Celebrate Scattery Island festival was named winner of the Community Gathering of the Year award, sponsored by The Gathering Ireland 2013. The event, which took place in July, was shortlisted from hundreds of Gathering initiatives submitted to the awards scheme.

Commenting on Ennis Town Council’s award success, mayor of Ennis Cllr Mary Coote Ryan said, “In the months since the Local Government Bill to abolish all town councils in 2014 was published by the Minister for the Environment, the staff and elected members of Ennis Town Council have continued to work closely to deliver the wide range of important services that have been provided to the people of Ennis since the late 19th century. I am delighted that this work has been given official recognition at the Excellence in Local Government Awards.”

Ennis town manager Ger Dollard, who attended the ceremony in Dublin’s Burlington Hotel, commented, “This award reflects the important role played by the local authority as a service provider. The fact that the Purple Flag and Friar’s Walk Coach Park initiatives were also shortlisted for other category awards underlines the extensive role played by the local authority in the development of the town.”

Ennis Town Council was presented with a specially-commissioned trophy designed by Tipperary Crystal.

Meanwhile there are hopes that Ennis can benefit from its new twinning arrangement with the German city of Langenfeld.

In October, the mayors of Ennis and Langenfeld signed a twinning charter establishing formal links between the two locations.

AN ENNIS woman admits she still fears for her family’s safety following the super typhoon that has devastated her native Philippines.

The family of café worker Vicky Garcia escaped harm when Typhoon Haiyan slammed into the Philippines on November 4.

Vicky says her village of Camburnan Tapaz, near the city of Roxas, was spared the effects of flooding but suffered destruction from the 300km an hour winds.

The village is home to 600 people and most of the buildings have been completely flattened. Four of Vicky’s sisters still live in the Philippines.

“They are all okay. No one died or was injured but they are very lucky. I was talking to them this morning and they still have no electricity and it is very hard to get food. You have to travel almost three hours to the nearest city for food,” explains Vicky,

Authorities estimate more than 3,900 people were killed when Typhoon Haiyan, one of the largest ever recorded made landfall in the central Philippines and the sea surged ashore.

Officials have estimated that up to 10,000 people have died in Tacloban city. More than nine million people have been affected with many struggling to survive without access to food, shelter and clean drinking water.

Vicky says, “We are lucky where we live, it is on higher ground, so we didn’t get the flooding. In our village nobody died but in the next village there were some people who died. We were just lucky. All of the buildings have been damaged. My school was destroyed. Two of my sister’s houses were damaged.”

Vicky lives in Ennis and has worked at the Snack Shack café in the town centre since moving to Ireland in 2004. One of her sisters lives in Ennis, two sisters live in Shannon and another lives in Cork.

Vicky has been in constant contact with her family and friends by phone and social media.

Amid fears that further storms could cause further destruction, Vicky says she is concerned about her family’s safety.

“There might be more storms. It is bad over there and we are still very worried for them,” she added.

A food drive for victims of the storm is underway in Shannon. People in and around the town are being asked to leave non-perisahable food and non-prescription medication to the collection point at the Skycourt Shopping Centre.

THE Environmental Agency (EPA), Clare County Council, and the Health Service Executive (HSE) are to meet later today (Tuesday) to discuss the issue of a noxious smell in Shannon.

Residents say that the smell appears to be abating slightly, but understand that it is the type of smell you get use to and therefore is still an issue.

The underlying cause of the odour is also worrying concerned locals.

The foul fetor has been investigated by the (EPA) and the environmental watchdog has advised that investigations to date indicate that the source of the odour appears to be the sewer network in Shannon.

The EPA and Clare County Council, with the assistance of the HSE, have also put in place an action programme for further monitoring and investigation.

Continuing investigative efforts are being focused on the sewer collection network including all discharges to the network.

The government bodies continue to monitor the smell as well as any unusual patterns of illness in the local population.

Air quality monitored by the EPA in the Shannon area between March 2012 and June 2013 showed pollutant levels were found to be below EU limit values.

MILTOWN Malbay has brought national honours to the county as the West Clare town has the been named one of the principal winners in this year’s IPB Pride of Place Competition in association with Co-operation Ireland.

More than 400 people from all over the island of Ireland travelled to Derry to attend the 11th annual awards ceremony on Saturday.

Miltown Malbay brings Clare its first success in the competition since the Clare Crusaders Children’s Clinic received an award under the Community Health Initiative category in 2011.

The town beat off stiff competition from all over the country to be crowned overall winners of Population Category three. Miltown Malbay Tidy Towns Committee members were presented with a crystal decorative memento and € 1,000.

Pride of Place, which is run by Cooperation Ireland in conjunction with local authorities north and south of the border, was first piloted in the summer of 2003.

The all-island initiative recognises and celebrates the vital contributions that community partnerships make to society, including promoting social cohesion, involvement in planning, the promotion of heritage, and environmental awareness.

Miltown Malbay Tidy Towns Committee spokesperson Sean Lenihan said, “Like many other small towns throughout Clare we have lots of diverse groups, associations and organisations, but what sets us apart is that when required, all sectors of the community work together and act as one. We are very aware that everybody has something to offer and we recognise the skills, inputs and competencies that different people have and utilise them accordingly to ensure that all visitors leave with fond memories and a willingness to return.”

Mayor of Clare Cllr Joe Arkins said Miltown Malbay’s success “is a wonderful example of what can be achieved when people come together for the benefit of their local community.

“This competition focuses on local communities, both north and south of the border, coming together to shape, change and enjoy all that is good about their area. I am sure that Clare’s other participants in this year competition, Mountshannon Community Council and An Sean Dún Residents Association in Roslevan will have also enjoyed the opportunity to network, exchange ideas and learn from others.”

Nicola Cullinan, Pride of Place Coordinator, Community and Tourism Directorate with Clare County Council added, “Pride of Place is a great way to acknowledge the hard work and selfless endeavour undertaken by communities from all over the island of Ireland. It is an opportunity to celebrate the vital contribution that community groups make to society and it demonstrates what local groups can achieve. Clare County Council is delighted to have played its part in supporting local partici

ALMOST 500 horses and dogs have been put down in the county so far this year by animal welfare services, a number that far exceeds figures for central London.

As many as 452 dogs were euthanised by the ISPCC acting for Clare County Council, with 37 horses also put down during 2013 to date.

This is an average of 11 animals every week and more than one a day.

According to Anne Haugh, Director of Services, Environment and Water Services, as many as 962 dogs and horses were impounded by agencies acting on behalf of Clare County Council.

The majority of the animals impounded or surrendered were dogs, with 915 canines taken in.

Of these 452 were re-homed including 148 who were re-claimed by owners.

As many as 47 horses were impounded by the authorities in Clare this year, with 10 released back to their owners.

A total of 37 horses were put down however.

“In the case of dog control, the council has an agreement with the ISPCA to carry out all of the coun cil’s functions, other than the taking of prosecutions or the making of Bye Laws under the 1986 Control of Dogs Act,” explained Ms Haugh.

She was responding to questions from East Clare county councillor Cathal Crowe (FF), who said the number of animals destroyed each year pointed to fundamental flaws in dog control laws.

“In all of the metropolitan London area, which has two local authorities and a population of eight million people, 320 dogs were euthanised last year,” he said adding that the figure for County Clare far exceeds that.

GARDAÍ in Shannon say they have not received any reports of bank accounts being illegally accessed following the discovery of a skimming device at a town centre ATM last month.

Gardaí were alerted after the insertion of the skimming device set off an internal alarm in the machine.

Gardaí have not received any reports of bank accounts being hit as the device may have been discov- ered before it was put to use.

It comes as a man in Ennis saw almost € 300 illegally removed from his account at the start of the month.

The man was informed by two banks – AIB and Bank of Ireland – that money from his accounts was used for a series of online transactions. Not all of the transactions were successful.

The amounts, which varied from € 10 to € 30, were used to purchase products from Apple’s iTunes website and Hostelworld.

The banks detected the series of “unusual transactions” which took place on a Sunday morning. The man was waiting to hear from the bank last night to know if his debit card accounts had been illegally accessed online or through other means. The man’s sister, who also lives in Ennis, also was also the victim of a recent similar fraud.

“It was from two separate accounts. The bank got in touch with me to say they had noticed a few unusual transactions on my account. They’ve said I’m going to be re- funded so I’m going to be talking to them,” he explained.

Cash machines in Limerick and Galway have recently been targeted in an ATM scam.

Gardaí in Shannon discovered a skimming device at a town centre cash point on October 11 but have received no reports so far of accounts being affected.

In August, the Irish Payment Services Organisation reported that almost € 30,000 had been stolen through an ATM scam in a single week.