Category: News

GARDAÍ are examining footage of drivers on the Clare side of the tunnel who have been caught on camera reversing and even doing u-turns to avoid having to pay a toll.

Cameras at the entrance to the new tunnel toll plaza have nabbed drivers reversing on the hard shoulder of the motorway back on to the roundabout to take an alternative route. Other cameras on the approach to the toll tunnell on the Clare side have cap- tured drivers going as far as doing a u-turn and driving the wrong way up the road.

A spokesman for the Direct Route – the company which operates the tunnel and toll – said that the dangerous behaviour has been filmed on the Clare side of the tunnel with drivers coming from the Shannon direction.

Clare registration plates have been identified in many of the instances, he said, and the footage has been handed over to gardaí and copies sent to the Road Safety Authority.

“This is completely irresponsible and dangerous behaviour,” the spokseman said.

He added that the incidents of reversing and turning are becoming less frequent as drivers become more familiar with the route which brings them to the tunnel.

“If drivers don’t want to pay the toll, there is another route still available and they can take that. But once they are on the mortorway and committed to the tunnel, it’s very dangerous to do anything but drive ahead.”

A 10-YEAR collaboration between local motorbike enthusiasts and Clare VEC has raised an estimated € 70,000 for local and national charities.

‘Wheels within Wheels’ started life as a motorbike restoration project involving students of Adult Education Services in Clare. The project’s aim was to raise money for charity by restoring, in some cases from scrap, vintage motorbikes.

Ennis man Jacko McMahon was the driving force behind the project for many years, helping to highlight various VEC initiatives and raise money for organisations such as St Luke’s Hospital, Dublin, Cahercalla Hospital, Steps youth club and the RNLI lifeboat service.

Since the project’s inception, Clare VEC provided facilities with education officer Dr Sean Conlan helping get the initiative of the ground in the early days.

Members of Clare’s motorcycling fraternity including the Banner Motorcycle Club also pitched in with their expertise over the years.

Jacko still helps out but the baton for Wheels within Wheels has been passed to Joe McConagle, a VEC tutor in motorbike and car mechanics.

For the past four years, Joe, supported by VTOS coordinator Frank Benson, has worked on projects with students at the Adult Education Centre in Kilrush.

Joe explained, “The bike is stripped down completely, rebuilt, finished and then we raffle it.” This year the team intends to fully restore a Suzuki GSX 750F with the aim of raising money for three-year-old Galway girl, Chloe Flaherty. Chloe requires round the clock care after suffering brain damage following complications that arose during surgery last year.

Joe, who is friends with Chloe’s father Patrick Flaherty, said, “She’s in full-time care. Her parents have almost had to stop working to provide care, it’s very specialised.

Work on the latest motorbike project has already begun and is expected to be completed by the end of June.

There are also plans to mark the 10th anniversary of Wheels within Wheels later this year.

Joe added, “The money has gone to different charities, in Clare and around Ireland. We reckon its raised around € 70,000 over 10 years.”

For further information on wheels within wheels contact joe. mcgonagle@yahoo.com.

A KILDYSART couple, who provide round-the-clock care for their terminally ill son, say they will have to do the unthinkable and sign the six-year-old into the care of the State if there are any further cuts in the carers allowance or services provided by the HSE.

Bridget and Eugene Lorrigan have been providing round the clock care for six-year-old Jason who suffers from a number of serious mental and physical disabilities – the cause of which have never been diagnosed.

UNEMPLOYED males in the Newmarket-on-Fergus area are invited to take part in a focus group for a local community needs assessment.

Community group Obair is carrying out a community needs assessment, with a view to putting together a range of events for locals. The aim is that those who are struggling with any aspect of their lives will be helped out. It is also envisaged that the findings will play a key role in shaping the future of the village.

Obair is inviting residents in the village and surrounding areas to take part in the survey, particularly unemployed men.

Co-ordinator Kirsty Horner has been working on the project for the past few months and is hoping to have all the information gathered over the coming months. A public meeting will then be held and locals will be encouraged to attend this and present their ideas for the future of the village.

Focus groups have been carried out involving single parents and those representing people with disabilities and their findings will be made available at a later stage.

“We still require unemployed males, within Newmarket-on-Fergus, to come forward and be part of a focus group for the community needs assessment. It is important that we have their input so that it is a balanced piece of research.

“Their point of view matters, and is important in moving the needs of the community of Newmarket-on-Fergus forward. It will allow us to iden- tify the issues faced by unemployed males in Newmarket-on-Fergus,” said Ms Horner.

“We are targeting specific groups, for example one-parent families, people with disabilities, unemployed males and the elderly. The aim is to create a profile of Newmarket and find out what the needs are in the village and what is here already. . . what needs to be improved and what needs to be added,” she said.

“We will form a social inclusion committee, where people who have never been on a committee before will be involved,” she said.

“It is important that people get involved. It’s a chance for them to have their say,” she said.

Anyone wishing to get involved in the project should phone Kirsty in Obair on 061 368030.

A MILESTONE will be marked in West Clare later this month when Baltard National School celebrates its 100th anniversary.

On June 24, locals in Baltard, Doonbeg, will gather at the school for a Mass to mark the occasion. It will be followed by what promises to be a memorable evening of nostalgia. Old roll books will be wheeled out, while photographic exhibitions will also form a central part of the celebrations.

Past pupils, parishioners and all those who have been associated with the school over the years have been invited to the event.

Over the years, the school has been refurbished and in recent times, new technology has been added including interactive projectors and computer systems.

A booklet is being compiled for the occasion and anyone associated with the school over the years is invited to contribute to this.

The school has reduced in size over the years. When it first opened, there were up to 100 students. There are just nine students enrolled at the moment. The event will be hosted by the school’s board of management. Chairman Michael Haugh said, “In more recent years we have been struggling to keep going. We lost some young people moving on to other parishes.

“We have to try to increase the numbers. The catchment area is not big. We are depending on people to come in from outside. It has been a problem to keep the school going and to promote it,” he added.

“Nobody wants to see the school closing. It is a focal point. It is like a junction in a city there is so much traffic passing,” he added.

Anyone wishing to contribute should contact the school.

TWO new tourism businesses are set to open in Clare in the coming weeks as more than 150 local operators came together in Ennis last week to show that the county is open for business.

Corofin locals Darragh and Aisling Quinn are preparing to launch The Farmyard later this month, one of the most innovative eco-tourism businesses ever launched in Ireland.

Meanwhile, Quilty natives Shane Ryan and Laura O’Dwyer have just launched Sugar Island, a cafe and arcade which will provide tourists and locals with something interesting to do in Quilty.

Located in the shadow of Mullaghmore, The Farmyard aims to provide an authentic family farm experience to tourists young and old. Set on a fully working farm, it will cater for children’s summer camps from July but plans to cater for a number of different groups, including residential tourists in the future and also has its own tea room and farm shop which will offer the public the best of local produce.

“The idea is that different groups can come onto the farm and engage in very simple farm and garden activities, such as feeding the animals or working in our organic polytunnel to see how fruit and vegetable grow,” said Aisling Quinn. “We are not trying to pretend to be something that we’re not – this is an authentic farmyard experi- ence and there is a market for people to come and experience that.”

After returning home from abroad, Quilty native Shane Ryan decided that he wanted to do something to make his town a better place to live in.

“The place is split into two sections, the back has a big pool and games for the kids out the back and at the front section we have a cafe for the parents so they can relax while they keep an eye on the kids,” said Shane. “There is nothing anywhere around us like this. When I was growing up in Quilty there was nothing there for young people to do so we decided why not do something good for the local people and liven the place up a bit.”

Meanwhile, more than 150 Clare tourism operators participated in the Gala Clare Tourism Networking Evening at the Armada Hotel last week. The free business networking event featured more then 80 tourism information stands from all over the county.

AN INITIATIVE by students at one Ennis primary school to encourage the re-use of household items has been given the thumbs up by Taoiseach Enda Kenny.

Holy Family Senior School was the overall winner in Clare County Council’s ‘Give and Take’ competition, in association with the Free Trade Ireland website.

On Friday last, a delegation from the school attended the County Council offices for a presentation from the Mayor of Clare, Christy Curtin. The school received a new laptop while sixth class student Aoife Flouch won the overall students prize of a € 100 One-for-All voucher.

Teacher Eilís Sheedy explained, “Following this success, we were invited to Castlebar to the official launch of the Free Trade Ireland website. A delegation travelled to Castlebar on May 30. There, we were privileged to meet the Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who commended Aoife and the school on our success in the competition.”

FreeTrade Ireland is a web service designed to facilitate and encourage the reuse of household and business items.

There was also success for the Holy Family in the latest round of the Green Flag awards. The school received its second Green Flag at a ceremony in the Galway Bay Hotel on May 25. The school was commended for its initiatives on energy conservation. The school’s green code is “Wasting energy is not cool, turn off the lights and save our fuel.”

An Taisce awarded 14 Green Flags to Clare schools under the Green Schools programme

Clonmoney NS was awarded its first Green Flag for its work on litter and waste. A further 13 schools received Green Flags for their work on energy, water and travel including: Dangan NS; Holy Family Junior School, and Holy Family Senior School, Ennis; Lissycasey NS; Mary Immaculate Secondary School, Lisdoonvarna; Scoil na Mainistreach, Quin; Tubber NS; Clohanes NS; Colaiste Muire, Ennis; Scoil Realt na Mara in Kilkee; St Caimin’s Community School, Shannon; Querrin NS and Drumdigus NS.

BUNRATTY and the magical silver stag of Bunratty Castle are the focus of a new children’s novel, which has just been published. The Silver Stag of Bunr a tt y is the title of Eithne Massey’s new book, where adventure, conflict and danger await four children as they race to save the magical Silver Stag of Bunratty Castle from a gruesome death.

The book is set in Bunratty Castle in the 14th century and is partly based on fact, along with four fictional children.

Sir Richard de Clare, Lord of Bunratty, wants the head of the Silver Stag on his walls and is preparing to hunt down his prey. Dame Anna, the mysterious woman in the castle tower, warns that any harm to this stag will bring doom to Bunratty for generations to come.

The children must work together and fast, but they are soon out of their depth. As they become the hunted ones, the question is can they save the stag – and themselves – before it’s too late.

Based partly on truth, the adventure is full of mystery and magic and brings the incredible medieval fortress to life for a whole new generation.

Eithne, who is from Wicklow, chose Bunratty as the setting for this book, having spent time in the area. “When anybody thinks of castles in Ireland, they think of Bunratty. We thought it would be a good idea to do a story based on a medieval castle,” she told The Cla re People .

“I went down to the castle itself and got inspiration for the central image of the book, the stag,” she added.

“The surrounding countryside is featured. They [the children] have to take a trip up the Shannon and that landscape is included in the book. The castle is central to it,” she said.

“There was a fair bit of research to make sure I got the geographical facts right and the history,” she added.

The book is aimed at 10 to 12 year olds. “I would hope that children would pick it up and read it for pleasure. It is a mixture of history and fantasy. The stag itself is a magical creature,” she said.

This is Eithne’s fifth book and is her second novel for children. It is published by O’Brien Press.

FORMER employees of Shannonside Oil have said they will continue their protest until management at the company agree to enter into talks with them.

Four men – Jimmy Jones, Paddy Kelly, Pat Quinlivan and Colm Quinlivan – staged a protest at the Shannonside Oil depot on the Clare Road, Ennis, last Wednesday and Thursday. The men are claiming they were unfairly dismissed from their positions as driver/ salesmen in April.

Limerick man Jimmy Jones, who worked with the company for 20 years, said the workers were not given any reason for their dismissal. He said the group decided to protest after seeing their jobs advertised in The Clare Champion and Limerick Leader newspapers.

He added, “The same jobs. The company has refused to enter into any talks with us. They just told us to go home. We can’t get in contact with them since. We wrote letters to them. They won’t respond to them. We’re here to make the public aware of what has been done to us.”

Clare man Pat Quinlivan, a driver/ salesman for six years, said that the men had sought a meeting through their union SIPTU. He added, “We’d have worked six days a week if they wanted us to, worked late at night. All during the winter there with the bad roads, ice, slipping off the roads. We always did what we could for the company. And then this just happened like that.”

He continued, “We’re hoping to let the public know what happened to us and get their backing hopefully as well. We would look to be re-instated back with the company.”

Colm Quinlivan, driver/salesman for three years, said, “It’s only two years ago that I got a letter off the company to get a mortgage stating that the job was long term for the foreseeable future. I got that mortgage and now I won’t be able to pay the mortgage because I’ve no job.”

He added, “We’ll protest for as long as it takes to get some sort of meeting or some sort of negotiations.”

Tulla man Paddy Kelly, was a driver/sales man for eight years. He said he is worried about the future.

“I’m a married man with children. They’re at home wondering why I’m at home. It was over 20 years back in the last recession when (I last didn’t have a job). It didn’t matter that time because I was a young fella. Within six months of the last time I got a job and that was it. But now there’s nothing out there.”

In a statement on Wednesday, Corrib Oil, who took over Shannonside Oil in 2008, said they had been in talks with SIPTU and workers for the past 18 months, saying redundancies were necessary because of adverse market conditions. Management at Corrib Oil did not respond to requests on Wednesday and Thursday from The Clare People for a comment.

A CAMPAIGN to make Ennis the friendliest town in Ireland would be boosted by a twinning arrangement with the American city of Charlestown.

That’s according to local Fine Gael councillor Johnny Flynn, who is calling on Ennis Town Council to investigate and consider the potential benefits of a possible twinning with Charlestown, South Carolina, America’s friendliest and “best mannered” city.

In a motion to be discussed at today’s meeting of Ennis Town Council, Cllr Flynn states that the ar rangement should be considered in light of the Council’s adopted resolution in 2010 to request the Government “to assist in the development of a National Irish Centre of Welcome in Ennis at Glór (or such similar alter native) and which could be used for other possible re- lated functions including issuing of cer tificates”.

Cllr Flynn explained that the proposal should also be considered in light of “Ennis Chamber and Ennis Development For um’s recent job creation and enterprise initiative to seek to position Ennis as Ireland’s friendliest town.”

The Create the Magic campaign, which was launched in Ennis in March, is aimed at raising the standards of customer service in businesses in Ennis and around Clare.

The Create the Magic initiative was developed by the Ennis Development For um and Ennis Chamber with the aim of making Ennis and Clare, Ireland’s friendliest town and county. Spearheaded by local businesswoman Aoife Madden, the project is cur rently in pilot phase with an initial 25 local businesses taking par t.

Launching the campaign in March, customer service expert and former Clare businesswoman Kathleen O’Sullivan urged Ennis to follow the example of Charlestown, which has been named America’s friendliest town for 14 of the past 30 years. She said the city had reaped a huge tourism benefit from its status.

Entrepreneur and Dragon’s Den panelist Bobby Ker r gave his backing to the campaign at a public meeting attended by over 150 business owners in Ennis last month.