The Clare People Archive

THE ability to make an instant im- pression was put to the test in Dro- moland Castle last week, when over one hundred business people stood face-to-face and pitched their re- spective businesses at each other. This business networking evening, organised by the Chambers of Com- merce in Shannon, Limerick and En- nis, was the first initiative of its kind jointly organised by the respective chambers to encourage their collec- tive membership to pitch their busi- nesses at each other.

Organisers and attendees were delighted with the outcome of the event. Claire Bannon of Indigo Signs, Smithstown, Shannon described it as the most impressive networking event she had attended, “It was easy to chat and make contact and emails have been flying in since.”

The evening was facilitated by ex- perienced networker and award-win- ning business coach Derek O’Dwyer of ActionCoach Ireland.

PLATO MidWest, Supply Network Shannon (SNS), Limerick Insti- tute of Technology (LIT) and the University of Limerick have joined forces to host a seminar for start up entrepreneurs and established SMEs to focus on the supports available to assist them to invest in R&D and in- novation.

The seminar, entitled “Knowl- edge Economy Research, Supports for Third Level and Companies to Facilitate Commercialisation and Collaboration” is to take place at Thomond Park on the April 2 from 2.30pm until 5.00pm.

Plato MidWest is a business sup- port forum for owner managers of SME’s. It is funded by the Enter- prise Boards of Limerick City and County and Clare. Through a unique partnership with large ‘parent’ com- panies, it provides its members with facilitated group learning, specialist expertise and advice and networking opportunities.

Commenting on the forthcoming seminar, Eoin Tynan-O’ Mahony, Re- gional Manager, Plato MidWest said, “We are delighted to be working in collaboration with LIT and SNS to bring this seminar to SMEs in the mid-west region. Both Plato and SNS members believe that there needs to be a greater awareness amongst companies in the SME sector of the supports available and easier access to funding opportunities open to them for R&D and innovation.

“The aim of this seminar is to pro- vide SMEs with the opportunity to see the value of and understand how research and technology transfer in the knowledge economy, can work for them and identify the routes to those supports. The starting point is to know who to contact in the third- level sector, Enterprise Ireland and other agencies and to learn about the success of other small companies in this field.”

Keynote speaker, Dr Siobhan Moane from LIT will provide an overview of Ireland’s drive to en- hance research linkages between enterprise and third-level education. Dr Moane, a native of Caherdavin, has worked as a science lecturer at LIT since 2000 and was recently appointed to the post of head of re- search and technology transfer to further develop links between re- search at LIT and industry.

SNS is an industry led, open, sec- toral network of manufacturing and service providers located in the Shannon region. Its aim is to rep- resent, promote, develop and inter- connect manufacturing and service companies in the region, regardless of size or activity.

Other speakers at the event will include Mr Liam Brown, National Contact Point NMP FP7, Enterprise Ireland (EI), Tom Bannon and Deir- dre Brougham, Enterprise Ireland

For further information and to reg- ister for this event contact Eoin Ty- nan-O’ Mahony, Regional Manager, Plato MidWest, mob: 086 303 5664 or email eoimn@platomidwest.ie. There is no charge for the event.

“THE seven luckiest divers in Eu- rope’ was how the group rescued from the water in Kilkee on Saturday was described.

The group had a lucky escape af- ter very strong currents swept them 600 metres out to sea, at lunchtime

on Saturday.

The group, members of the Athlone Sub Aqua club, spent two hours in the water, before being taken to safety.

The group went diving off George’s Head in Kilkee Bay at around mid- day and had only intended undertak- ing a 30-minute dive. However, the alarm was raised some 45 minutes

later, after they failed to resurface.

One of the group, a 20-year-old man, suffered from hypothermia as a result of the incident, but has made a recovery. None of the others suf- fered any consequences of what hap- pened. They were visiting Kilkee for a weekend trip.

The rescue operation got underway

through contact with Valentia Coast- guard. The Irish Coastguard helicop- ter was then contacted, while Kilkee Marine Rescue was then notified of the incident.

Kilkee Marine Rescue Service spokesman, Manuel Di Lucia said

conditions were atrocious on the CENA “Visibility was so bad. They

wouldn’t have been able to see where they were going. The waves were all over the place. They were thrown around by the swell and ended up 1,500 metres from where they went in,” he said.

After being dispatched to the scene, the coastguard helicopter spotted the group in the water and two of the men were airlifted to safety. The other five were picked up by the res- cue boat, which was in the area at the time.

“They were very lucky. They can count themselves the seven luckiest divers in Europe. If the helicopter hadn’t spotted them, they would have been in serious trouble. Even the diver boat coming back found it very tough,” he said.

‘This was one of the more serious incidents in Kilkee, but as it turned out, it wasn’t tragic, thankfully,” he Crate

Poet donates book proceeds to charity

EVEN the weather was kind for the launch last week of the first currach to be made in Quilty in 32 years.

After day of rain and high winds, the skies cleared for enough time for the craft to take to the waters.

Ten members of Quilty Currach Club built the boat from scratch.

It was built under the supervision of boat-builder James Madigan and erant-aided by the Clare VEC.

It was launched at Seafield pier and

blessed by Fr Pat Larkin.

“Thirty-two years ago, the late Austin Boyle – better known as Au- tie – built the last currach, which was later shipped to Chicago and today hangs on display in Fado’s Irish pub, which is owned by a Limerick man,” explained currach club member, Ter- esa Egan.

The only woman to work on the building of the boat, Teresa traced the last currach built to Chicago.

‘“Autie’s son, also called Austin, worked on building this currach, so

the skill has gone to the second gen- eration now,” she said.

The Quilty area was once a strong- hold of the currach. In the 1940s, the boats were used for drift-net fishing for mackerel and herring.

The sea gave work of other kinds as well. In the 1960s there was a sea- weed factory in Kilrush and Galway and the walls at Seafield were always covered in seaweed drying in the Oeone-te

“In the mid ‘20s there were 50 cur- rachs in the area of Quilty and each

currach was named after a saint,” said Teresa. ““We don’t have a name for our currach yet. We still have to decide,’ she added.

Now the club are in training to row in the upcoming regattas.

The currach’s first venture out to sea will be in a charity row from Kilrush to Carrigaholt on Saturday, March 14.

THE winter vomiting bug has closed a third-level facility in the mid-west for almost a week.

Last week, a number of students presented themselves to the Med1i- cal Centre at Mary Immaculate Col- lege with gastric flu-like symptoms including diarrhoea and vomiting. The college immediately contacted the HSE who, following their inves- tigations, have confirmed seven in- dividual cases of norovirus (winter vomiting bug) amongst the students.

The college, in consultation with the HSE, moved to control the out- break last Wednesday, suspending all college activities in order to facilitate the intensive cleaning and sanitisa- tion of the campus to prevent a sec- ondary introduction of the virus.

The college expressed their grati- tude to the HSE for the “swift and professional manner in which they dealt with this matter and thanked them for their advice and _ assist- _N Nome

The college will re-open today but student activities, including lectures and tutorials, are postponed until 9am on Wednesday, March 18.

The HSE said that “preliminary results of their investigations sug-

gested that the outbreak of gastroen- teritis at Mary Immaculate College was caused by norovirus, the source of which has not been identified. Precautionary measures are being implemented by Mary Immaculate College to minimise the risk of fur- ther transmission.”

Norovirus is often known as ‘win- ter vomiting disease’. Outbreaks af- fecting hundreds of people have been reported. Cases occur in all seasons although it is true that there is an in- crease in winter.

The illness characteristically starts with the sudden onset of severe and dramatic vomiting. This can occur with such force that it is termed “pro- jectile”. The virus is so small that there are millions of them in parti- cles of vomit which can be widely dispersed in an area.

“Tt is vitally important to clean a very wide area when cleaning up after a person who has vomited,’ a spokes- woman for the HSE said. Some peo- ple also develop diarrhoea.”

In general, the symptoms usually last for about 24 to 36 hours after which the person feels washed out for a day or so. There are no long- term effects of norovirus infection and, even in the frail or elderly, eve- ryone makes a full recovery.

PLEAS are being made in the Dail to extend time for tourism projects ap- plying for financial aid because the investors are being frozen out in the credit crunch.

Up to 30 schemes seeking tax breaks under the Mid-Shannon Tour- ism Investment Scheme were to have their applications completed by June 1 of this year.

But the credit squeeze means that most of those schemes cannot guar- antee their end of the funding, rul- ing them out of applying for the tax relief which has been built into their

oF Nerv E-haloyetcy

The Dail heard from Fine Gael TDs and senators in the mid-west that in- vestors are being hit in relation to their applications by the paralysis in the lending system.

The financial support announced in the 2007 budget was to provide tax breaks spread over seven years for new and refurbished tourism facili- ties other than accommodation.

It has been delayed for most of a year, going through the vetting proc- ess necessary with the EU.

Deputy Pat Breen (FG) said it was ‘‘a major blow for those caught in the situation. It is lunacy to jeopardise

projects like these which have the potential to create jobs in an eco- nomic crisis.”

The threat to the tourism projects 1s the second to emerge in recent times in relation to tourism earnings from Lough Derg.

East Clare’s most important source of income – tourism – could be seri- ously compromised if plans go ahead to take millions of litres of water out of the Shannon and Lough Derg to feed Dublin’s needs.

A presentation by Dublin City Council’s consultants on the pro- posed project did nothing to calm fears in the mid-west about plans to

drain 340 million litres of water a day out of the Shannon system.

The extra water is needed to meet the projected demand from Dublin up to 2031 and beyond.

Local representatives, ecologists, fisheries groups and the ESB have all added their voices to the concerns being expressed about the project.

“We don’t have anything like enough information about the im- pact which this could have on our water-ways,” said Killaloe council- lor, Tony O’Brien.

A MAN whoarrived into court drunk and repeatedly interrupted the judge has been sent to prison for a week. Daniel Higgins (50), of Woodgrove, Cloughleigh, Ennis, was before En-

nis District Court on Friday, where he faced motoring charges.

After speaking loudly from the back of the courtroom while anoth- er case was being dealt with, Judge Joseph Mangan asked was Higgins intoxicated and was told by a garda

that he was.

The judge warned Higgins not to disrupt the court again and said he would find him in contempt if he did not desist.

A few minutes later, Higgins again interrupted, asking the judge, “Are

you going to deal with my case now’? All ‘m up for is driving the car. I was insured.”

Judge Mangan said, “I find you’re in contempt of court, the reason be- ing arriving in court intoxicated and persistently interrupting the court.”

He asked him did he want an op- portunity to purge his contempt and Higgins then apologised and was told to “sit down quietly”’.

However, moments later, he again interrupted, and was jailed for seven CRASS

FIANNA Fail has announced the selection of a third candidate for the Ennis West electoral area.

Tom McNamara (56) from Kil- maley has joined Councillor Peter Considine and Garrett Greene in the line-up for the county council elec- tion.

Tom is a first time candidate who is a retired assistant director of nursing

with Clare Mental Health Services. He has been extremely active in the community in Kilmaley, helping to form the Kilmaley Development As- sociation ‘Meitheal’ in 1995, a body which he chaired for 12 years.

Tom believed it was necessary to form the association to provide a voice for the people of Kilmaley as they had no local representation on Clare County Council at the time. The purpose of Meitheal was to pro-

vide an outlet for the people of the parish to take control of their lives and make improvements for the local community. Over the years Meitheal and Tom have been very successful in achieving this goal, building 12 houses for the elderly of the parish along with a day centre that acco- modates 25 people a day, four days a week. They have also set up a FAS scheme which has helped to tidy the area, mending walls and footpaths,

as well as organising CPR training for 35 people and installing two defi- brillators in the parish.

Tom has also co-ordinated the in- stallation of a radio communication to help broadcast Mass to the elderly of the parish. He also chairs the field development committee for Kilma- ley GAA which is looking to secure two hurling fields for the centre of Kilmaley and has successfully raised €200,000 for this purpose to date.

THE developers of a €1 million cre- matorium in Shannon are to look for financial support as the economic climate is poised to present major stumbling blocks for their project.

The project has been given the green light by An Bord Pleanala, de- spite objections from local residents and local county councillor Gerry Flynn (Independent). It will be the third crematorium in Ireland, adding to existing facilities in Dublin and Core

The plan – which will include a chapel for 70 people – close to [lau- namanagh cemetery, has been on the cards for three years. Plans were in1- tially lodged in 2006, but were later revised, after queries were raised by county council planners. Its develop- ers, Shannon town councillor Sean Hillery and undertaker Tony McMa- hon, are disappointed that it took so long to achieve planning permission, but are relieved that the permission was granted.

They brought in consultants from the UK – involved in similar schemes worldwide – and an ecologist from Dublin, to assist with their plans.

Mr Hillery said that the developers will have to sit down and go back to Clare County Council, with a view to purchasing or leasing the land, on which to locate the crematorium.

Mr Hillery said the prospect of undertakers getting involved, finan- cially, in the crematorium, is a strong possibility.

“Some undertakers may take more than an interest in the crematorium. I’d say we will probably go down that road to collect money. We always in- tended to go down that road,” he said. He said the current recession “will make it much more difficult” to come up with the money for the project. “If there wasn’t a recession, we wouldn’t have to be selling shares,” he said.

‘“T have had that dream for 20 years and the location is ideal. I’ve been proven correct. The greatest ecolo- gists have come in now and said that.

I’m sorry it took so long, but on the other hand, I’m satisfied their con- cerns have been dealt with,” said Mr Hillery.

‘“Cremating will be much more cost effective than traditional burial,’ he Said.

“The grounds will be nice and secluded. There will be a concrete building and wall of remembrance,” he added.