The Clare People Archive

AS THE countdown begins to the Clare hurlers’ date with destiny in Croke Park there are growing calls for the All-Ireland final to be shown on a big screen in Ennis.

Local authorities in Ennis are considering the suggestion to erect a big screen in the town centre, a proposal that could be done in conjunction with local businesses and Clare GAA.

Council officials met yesterday to discuss possible plans to mark Clare’s meeting with Cork in the All-Ireland final on September 8.

Abbey Street car park is the most likely venue for any pubic screening of the big match.

The area previously hosted celebrations to mark the ‘homecoming’ of sports legend Muhammad Ali to Ennis in 2009 and the recent Love Live music events.

Local community activist and member of the Disabled People of Clare support group Dermot Hayes proposed the big screen idea last week. He says the final is a great opportunity for communities across Clare to celebrate and come together.

He explains, “When Ennis hosted Muhammad Ali some years ago, a big screen was put up in the Abbey Street car park. It was just brilliant. I was there and still remember the buzz. In Limerick in 2006 when Munster played in the Heineken Cup, thousands came out on the streets of Limerick to enjoy the event. These memories are appreciated. So why not do it for the big match. Not everyone will be able to get a ticket and people who are living alone will want to share the joy of Clare playing in an All-Ireland final.”

Dermot is promoting the proposal as the ‘Big Idea’ through YouTube and Facebook.

Fine Gael councillor Johnny Flynn has called for Ennis Town Council and Clare County Council to “actively consider the installation, in partnership with others, of a large screen in Abbey Street car park, Ennis, or the All Ireland hurling final”.

Cllr Flynn says that subject to public demand, there may even be a need to site the screen in Cusack Park.

The Ennis councillor says the event would allow families unable to get tickets be part of the Banner County’s big day. Cllr Flynn added that a big public event would also be a good “tourism marketing opportunity” for the town.

A ROCK climber cheated death in the Burren on Friday afternoon after falling almost 25 feet from a sheer cliff and landing on his back. The climber, who has not been identified, is recovering in hospital after miraculously surviving the fall at a popular climbing spot between Doolin and Fanore.

The man, who is in his thirties, sustained serious injuries to his lower spine and arms in the incident – which took place around 3.15pm at Ailladee, close to the famous Mirror Wall.

The man was wearing a climbing helmet and harness and was saved by his equipment, and by the quick thinking of his friends who immediately contacted the emergency services.

The Doolin Unit of the Irish Coast Guard responded to the incident and administered first aid. The Shannonbased coast guard helicopter arrived at the scene minutes later but was unable to find a secure landing space.

Instead, a paramedic was lowered from the helicopter and spinally immobilised the man and transported him, with the help of the Doolin Coast Guard, to a clear area where he was winched into the helicopter and transported to University College Hospital in Galway.

The extent of the mans’ injuries are unknown but he had complained of severe lower back pain and other injuries.

“We responded to a call and discovered a seriously injured 32-yearold man close to the Mirror Wall between Doolin and Fanore. The climber had fallen between six and seven metres and was was severely injured,” said Mattie Shannon of the Doolin Coast Guard. “He was wearing a climbing harness and a helmet, which probably saved him, but it appears that the ropes may have come away from the wall somehow. He was suffering from severe pain to his lower back and injuries to his shoulders and arms.”

The cliffs at Ailladee and Ballyreen, located on the coast road between Doolin and Fanore, are some of Ireland’s premier climbing cliffs. They are a popular destination for climbing groups and are also used for Irish Army training as well as training for the coast guard and other rescue services.

Earlier this year a man was struck by the falling stone while climbing in the area and was airlifted to hospital for treatment.

PILOT inexperience has been identified as one of the possible causes of a plane crash which took place at Shannon Airport in 2011.

According to investigators at the Department of Transport’s Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU), excessive speed as well as pilot inexperience caused a major issue aboard an Aer Arann flight.

There were 21 passengers and four crew on board the Aer Arann Manchester to Shannon service when its nose wheel collapsed, controls jammed and it left the runway on July 17, 2011.

Nobody on board was seriously injured in the incident, which resulted in the plane scraping along the ground for 1,200 metres before coming to a stop on a grass verge.

According to one witnesses, smoke or steam could be seen billowing from the front of the 17-year-old aircraft while its left propeller crashed through and demolished a sign on the runway.

The aircraft was so badly damaged that it has been taken out of service and has not been repaired.

In its report, the AAIU states the plane approached the runway on two occasions in excess of the recommended speeds.

The then newly-promoted pilot was a “relatively inexperienced” captain according to the report, and had little experience handling the aircraft in difficult conditions.

Investigators said this inexperience was a contributory factor in the accident, along with inadequate information being provided to both her and her co-pilot about landing in crosswinds.

The likely cause of the incident was excessive speed and inadequate control of the aircraft during the blustery conditions, it was found.

The AAIU has ordered Aer Arann to review its training of pilots in landing aircraft in crosswinds as a result.

FAMILY, friends and former colleagues gathered to pay tribute to retired Garda Superintendent, Frank Doris, who passed away in Ennis last week. A native of Longford, Mr Doris worked in Kilrush and Ennis during the seventies and eighties. The 89-year-old father of three retired from the force in 1986.

Prior to coming to Clare, Mr Doris was a highly respected Detective Inspector with the Garda Fraud Squad in Dublin. He worked on a number of high profile cases during his time in Dublin and was one of the lead investigators on the Shanahan Stamp auction case in 1959 when a businessman was arrested for fraud after thousands of investors lost money in a huge scam involving the sale of Irish Free State Stamps. He was well known in legal circles and during his time in Clare, Mr Doris is said to have brought a deep knowledge of criminal law to his role as a Garda prosecutor in court.

Mr Doris, who lived in Roslevan, had a strong interest in sport, fishing and shooting. He played for the Longford senior footballers in the fifties and retained a keen interest in horseracing.

At his funeral mass in St Joseph’s Church in Ennis on Sunday, Mr Doris was recalled as a loving father, good friend and respected colleague. Burial took place in Newtownforbes, Longford. He is survived by his loving wife Rosaleen, daughters Elizabeth and Yvonne, son Thomas, grandchildren, family, extended family and many friends. JUSTAFEWWORDS . . . Colin Ryan is surrounde d by me dia at Clare ’s official p re ss night ahead of t he All-Ire land se nior hurling final in t he Temple Gat e Hot e l last Tue sday.

GARDAÍ are investigating the circumstances of the latest fire at a € 2.2 million Traveller accommodation site in Ennis.

Three housing units were damaged following an incident of alleged criminal damage at the Beechpark halting site last week. Gardaí say an accelerant was used to douse the buildings but it did not ignite for some reason. However considerable smoke damage was caused to the building’s interiors. No one was hurt in the incident as the Beechpark site is currently vacant. Clare County Council was in the process of a € 15,000 refurbishment of the property when it was damaged

In a statement, a council spokesman said the costs the damage had yet to be ascertained. He explained, “The site was vacant at the time. The council was in process of refurbishing the property when it was damaged. The contract value was € 15,865 excluding VAT.

The contractor had just commenced on site therefore the actual cost of works undertaken will be substan- tially less than the contract value. The cost of the damage has yet to be ascertained. However, the roof and parts of the interior ceiling were badly damaged by fire.”

The Beechpark development was completed in 2004 at a cost of € 2.2 million.

In February, Clare County Council revealed that it had no plans to refurbish or rebuild Beechpark following a series of arson attacks on Traveller accommodation.

The council had been forced to install CCTV cameras to prevent against further attacks.

The latest incident at Beechpark comes just days after a separate suspicious fire at another vacant Traveller accommodation site in Ennis.

The incident occurred at around 1.50am on Saturday, August 17, when a vacant house at the Ashline site on Kilrush Road caught fire in what Gardaí described as “suspicious circumstances”.

The fire service attended the scene and the Gardaí in Ennis are investigating the circumstances of the fire. This is the second time this year that fire has broken out at the Ashline site, which cost € 1.7 million to build.

AN INVESTMENT of less than € 800,000 would be enough to secure homes for 55 Clare families, many of whom have been on the waiting list for a number of years.

According the figures obtained from Clare County Council, there are currently 55 local authority houses out of commission in Clare – and in need of only minor works to being them back into circulation.

A needs assessment carried out by the council earlier this year revealed that there are currently 1,671 peo- ple in need of social housing in the county. While the cash-strapped local authority has had some success securing funding for housing in recent weeks, it is unclear when they will have finding available to bring all of these houses back into their housing stock.

Clare County Council was granted € 500,000 last week for the provision of six houses for people with special needs, while it also secured sizable funding for house retrofitting – which will upgrade the insulation on 250 social houses – earlier this month.

“As at mid-year a total of 55 social housing units are vacant but this fig- ure is subject to change on a weekly basis as vacant units are returned to stock and units become newly vacated. The estimated cost of returning 55 units to stock is € 775,000, or approximately € 14,000 per unit,” said Bernadette Kinsella, Director of Services with Clare County Council.

Meanwhile, the Irish Council for Social Housing (ICSH) have shortlisted Glensheen Court, developed by Banner Housing Association for the 2013 Social Housing Awards.

Glensheen Court is a housing project for people with disabilities located within 1km of Ennis town. Each apartment in the development apartment includes two bedrooms, two accessible bathrooms, along with a kitchen/living area with each apartment having a private open space area to the rear.

A number of special safety features have also been incorporated into the scheme to enhance tenant safety and security including front door keypad, visual telecom along with alarms in each bathroom. The Banner Housing Association is a non-profit charitable organisation based in Ennis.

The winners will be announced at a gala dinner held at the ICSH National Social Housing Conference which takes place on September 18.

CLARE had its best day on the jobs front for a long, long time yesterday when landmark Shannon company EI Electronics announced the creation of 70 new jobs.

The company, which has just celebrated it 50th anniversary in Shannon, announced that it would be swelling its local workforce from 430 to 500. This represents the largest single jobs announcement in Clare since the start of the recession in 2008.

The company, which is one of the real success stories of the Shannon Free Zone, is 100 per cent Irishowned and has become a world leader in the field of fire safety.

It already contributes an estimated € 30 million to the local economy each year and the new expansion is lightly to increase that figure by more than € 3 million.

In addition to it’s Shannon staff, the company also employs more than 50 people on mainland Europe – mostly in Germany and France. All of its high-skilled work, including research and manufacturing, takes place at it 12,000 square metre facility in Shannon.

The company is already one of Clare’s leading exporters – with more than 95 per cent of the good manufactured on site destined for the European market.

“I am delighted that EI Electronics has decided to expand its operation in Shannon with the creation of 70 jobs. This will have a direct benefit on a large number of individuals and their families. It is also a real vote of confidence in Clare and the wider region, as a place to do business,” said Clare Senator Martin Conway (FG).

“This expansion will make a significant difference to the wider region, and will undoubtedly lead to additional jobs being created in connected industries. The success of the workforce in EI Electronics is also proof that our indigenous companies can prosper and thrive.”

The company will host an open day for current and former staff members in Shannon later this week.

“As a major employer for 50 years, many thousands of people have worked at EI, covering three generations. This EI diaspora is spread over the counties of Clare, Limerick, Kerry, Cork, Tipperary, Galway and Mayo,” said managing director Michael Guinee.

“The Open Day gives these past employees the opportunity to come back to their alma mater, see the factory and possibly meet up with old colleagues.”

THE organisers behind the Ballyvaughan Bay Hop are examining the possibility of adding a number of mid-day sailings to the trial service which gets underway next Monday, September 2.

The service was officially launched on the Ballyvaughan Pier on Sunday with a family fun day presided over by the Mayor of Clare, Cllr Joe Arkins (FG).

The launch also saw the first journey undertaken across Galway Bay by the fast ferry – with passengers making it to Galway City is 28 minutes before and returning to Ballyvaughan in just 25 minutes.

“It was a really great day. Most of the village was out at the pier for the opening ceremony and the entertainment and the atmosphere was really good,” said Gwen Ryan of the Ballyvaughan Bay Hop.

“We took a number of people out on the boat around the bay before we made the journey across to Galway. Professor Kevin Leyden of the the Whitaker Institute at NUI Galway and Carol Gleeson from the Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark travelled on the first crossing along with a number of local politicians.

“I think everyone was surprised at how quickly we made it across to Galway and back again. It shows that it really will be a big benefit for people commuting to and from work each day.

“We are now looking at the possibility of adding a few extra sailings for the trial – maybe during the afternoon. These sailings would be aimed at tourists but also at people who might look at using the service to commute to work but are not in a position to try out the service at other times.”

The trial is being supported by the Burren and Cliffs of Moher Geopark under the TransTourism Project. The trial will be used to measure the potential social, environmental and economic impacts a marine passenger service would have on Ballyvaughan and the Burren.

The aim of Ballyvaughan Bay Hop is to establish a rural commuter fast ferry service from North Clare to Galway. Commuting on the ferry twice a day would reduce the average travel time between Ballyvaughan and Galway by more than two hours.

For more information or to buy tickets call www.ballyvaughanbayhop.com or visit www.facebook. com/ballyvaughanbayhop.

THE next step towards developing a new civic and arts centre in Shannon will be taken a step further when a public forum takes place in the airport town early next month.

The proposal by The Shannon Venue Ltd., to develop a new iconic, debtfree, multifunctional civic and arts centre for Shannon will be outlined at a meeting in the Oakwood Arms Hotel on Wednesday, September 4.

Shannon residents, civic and arts groups, and all interested parties are invited to use this opportunity to share their views, make suggestions or ask questions about the proposed community and not-for profit venture.

A one-acre site in Shannon town centre has been secured from Shannon Development for the proposed project subject to planning permission being granted.

Commenting on the project David Neylon, Property Executive, Shannon Development, said “Shannon Development is delighted to have been able to assist with this worthwhile endeavour which will have a positive benefit for the people of Shannon by providing a home for the arts, culture and many other community activities. We wish The Shannon Venue Ltd every success with the project.”

Project team member Derek Barrett says the proposed centre is a new opportunity for Shannon.

“We believe this facility will help make Shannon a better place to live, work and do business in. It will become a focal social and cultural point for residents, employees, industry and visitors alike. It will give a renewed sense of place, purpose and community,” he said.

“With a strong focus on being multifunctional, we are confident that we can meet and exceed the expectations of most, if not all the community groups that exist within the town.

“Having already received positive feedback and support from the town council, town manager, the county council, Shannon Chamber of Commerce and a range of large community groups that would consider using the facility, such as: Shannon Musical Society, Muse Productions, Eclipse, Shannon Gospel Choir, Christian Church and both secondary schools (St Patrick’s & St Caimin’s), we are now at the stage where we would like additional input from every other group within Shannon, together with residents and employees who may consider using this centre.”

THE Clare public’s need for information and assistance on legal matters continues to rise across the county, according to Clare Citizens Information Service’s annual report for 2012.

As many as 769 people attended the free legal advice clinics at the citizen’s information centres in County Clare last year.

While the report showed a slight decrease in the number of people requiring free legal assistance with financial matters, it also pointed not just a fundamental need in Irish society for accessible legal information and advice for individuals, but also for fairer systems that allow people to access their rights across a wide range of issues.

The Legal Advice Clinic’s statistics indicate that family issues, employment problems and money worries continue to dominate the agenda, constituting about half of all of its enquiries.

However, some areas of law have seen increased queries, such as housing/landlord and tenant law.

“The phenomenon of the ‘accidental landlord’ has been noted by FLAC – people who have had to rent out their homes to meet rising mortgage payments or invested as pension provision. They do not have the same resources as ‘professional’ landlords nor the funds to get necessary legal information and advice,” pointed out Paul Woulfe, Manager with the Clare Citizens information Service.

The report also recognises the work of volunteer lawyers in offering legal advice in free and confidential centres in Clare, in partnership with Citizens Information Centres.

Mr Woulfe said the centres provide an essential service for people who require legal advice to address a problem that they are facing, but who do not have the resources to pay for a consultation with a private solicitor

He said that most people only become aware of the law when they are in trouble but at that time, they need to be able to use it.

“For many, the law is confusing and intimidating. Alongside the dedicated management and staff of the Citizens Information Service in Clare, local volunteers solicitors provide a bridge between people and the law, so that they can understand their own situations better and can address the problems that they are facing, with dignity.