Author name: oisinkelly

The Chair of Donegal’s Joint Policing Committee has called for Defence Forces support for over-stretched Donegal Gardaí. Cllr Patrick McGowan claims that the county is so understaffed that whole areas are left with just two guards on duty at night. There has been a number of high profile robberies on elderly people in Donegal over […]

The final cost of repairing Letterkenny General Hospital will run into millions. Following a phased opening since the weekend, the interim Emergency Department at the hospital opened to walk-in patients this afternoon, three weeks after the severe flooding at the end of July which forced the closure of several departments General Manager Sean Murphy says

Two women are due in court in Peru today over alleged drugs smuggling. 20 year old Michaella McCollum from Co Tyrone and her co-accused Melissa Reid are accused of trying to smuggle around 11 kg of cocaine on a flight from Lima to Madrid. The pair claim they were forced by an armed gang to

As students consider their CAO offers today, Nursing courses at Letterkenny I.T. are once again the most sought after courses atr the college, with 400 points required for General Nursing, 375 for Psychiatric Nursing and 360 for Intellectual Disability Nursing. However, in all three cases, not all applicants with the minimum points requirement were offered

Management at Letterkenny General Hospital say the Emergency Department is continuing to expand its services following last month’s flooding. With effect from midday today, the interim Emergency Department is now open to all ambulance and GP admissions covering the North and West of the county, north of the Barnsmore Gap. It is anticipated the derpartment

Highland Radio News can reveal that The Bay View Hotel in Killybegs is under new ownership. The new owner of the hotel, in the heart of Killybegs, is Peter Gabriel of the Gabriel Law Corporation in Singapore. Restoration work on the hotel has already started and Job Vacancies will be advertised shortly. The Bay View

In what the Irish Coastguard is describing as an unusual incident – a Spanish tourist knocked on Malin Head Coastgaurd Coordination Centre’s door having been attacked and bitten by a dog. It is understood the injured person was badly bitten. First aid was given as an ambulance travelled to the scene to remove the person

The Fleadh in Derry has been hailed as the biggest one ever to take place. The Irish traditional music festival, which came to North for the first time this week, ended last night with a huge closing ceremony in Ebrington Square. Over 430,000 people visited Derry over the past week. Shona McCarthy is the Chief

The question-and-answer website Ask.FM has announced it will be implementing a number of changes to improve safety. The popular site has been under scrutiny following the death of 14 year old British girl Hannah Smith – who endured months of online bullying before being found hanged in her bedroom. The Latvian based website has also been

Letterkenny has the cheapest student accommodation in the country. Figures from Daft.ie show the average rent for a single room is now quoted at 174 euro per month – a drop of over 7% from last year. Students looking to rent a double room face paying 249 euro per month, a rise of almost 8% on last

The solicitor for 20 year old Tyrone girl, Michaella McCollum, accused of trying to smuggle 1.7 million euro worth of cocaine – is expected to discuss her case with police in Peru later today. Belfast based, human rights lawyer, Peter Madden will travel to a police holding centre where the county Tyrone woman and co-accused

The West / North West Hospital Group has set up a steering group to oversee the restoration of services at Letterkenny General Hospital. The commitment was given by CEO Bill Maher at a weekend meeting with Cllr Ciaran Brogan, a member of the HSE West Regional Forum. Cllr Brogan says there are many challenges facing

A Strabane Ulster Unionist councillor has criticised the allocation of places on the Statutory Transition Committee for the North West Amalgamation. The 16 seat committee will see representatives from both Strabane and Derry come together into a new so-called super council. It will have 9 Sinn Fein, four SDLP and three DUP members. There will

Heritage week begins in Donegal today with over 100 events due to take place throughout the county. Many of the events will be free to the public and will be held throughout the week until Sunday the 25th August. Heritage officer from Donegal County Coucil, Joseph Gallagher, spoke earlier about what people can expect…

Fleadh Cheoil 2013 is advising the public of event information to assist with arrangements in attending Fleadh Cheoil over the weekend. Drivers are asked to exercise caution in city centre areas and be aware of the extended event zones at Victoria Market and Ebrington. Drivers are reminded to avoid parking anywhere where they may be

The new Finn Valley Leisure Centre opens its doors tomorrow, marking the end of a campaign for a swimming pool in the Twin Towns which has gone on for decades. Local councillor Patrick Mc Gowan is one of the directors of the centre, and has been closely involved in the campaign to have it built

The HSE has confirmed that a temporary Emergency Department will open on a phased basis at Letterkenny General Hospital starting tomorrow (Saturday). The Emergency Department at the hospital has been out of commision    following serious flooding three weeks ago. The temporary facility has been made possible by bringing mobile diagnostic equipment and temporary buildings onto

The Donegal based Uncle of Shane Geoghegan has said the family have drawn some consolation from the conviction of John Dundon. On Tuesday Dundon was convicted for the murder of the 28-year-old Garryowen rugby player. The 31 year old of Hyde Road, Limerick, has been jailed for life for ordering the killing that led to

A Donegal Senator has claimed that government inaction could lead to 60 million euro of much needed funding for rural Ireland being returned to Europe. Brian Ó Domhnaill  has reiterated his call on Minister Phil Hogan to ensure there is a 100% drawdown of funding under the LEADER programme. He says the minister’s ‘ham-fisted’ approach

Donegal-based Spanish students have for the first time since the  Omagh bomb crossed the border into Northern Ireland. The restrictions were imposed after Spanish and Donegal children and their teachers were caught up in the Real IRA bombing which killed 29 people 15 years ago. 12 year-old Student Fernando Blasco Baselga and group leader Rocio

Donegal Independent TD Thomas Pringle has described the actions of Irish telecommunications companies pressuring people to move to paperless billing as ‘unnecessary and unacceptable behaviour. Deputy Pringle says that while paperless billing is environmentally friendly and should be adopted where possible, it doesn’t suit everyone. He points out that with less than half of all

The SDLP says new allegations about the aftermath and investigation of the Omagh bomb serve to strengthen the need for a realistic and practical inquiry. Yesterday was the 15 anniversary of the Omagh bomb – twenty-nine people died and over 200 people were injured when a car bomb planted by the Real IRA exploded. It

The family of Michaela McCollum – the Tyrone being held in Peru on suspicion of drug-trafficking – will arrive in Lima today. The 20-year-old from Co Tyrone and her co-accused Melissa Reid from Scotland were arrested last week after authorities allegedly found 1-point-7 million euro worth of cocaine in their luggage. Also arriving in Peru

A barrister has claimed he was stopped by police and held for a period on his way to court to represent a dissident republican in what a District Judge described as a matter of ‘concern.’ Mr. Plunkett Nugent was on his way to Derry Magistrate’s Court this morning when he said he was stopped on

Students across Northern Ireland have been picking up their A-Level results today, with many now sure of the college offers they had hoped for. Others who didn’t get the results and offers they wanted, and now find themselves at a crossroads. Peter Mc Evoy is an advisor with the Northern Ireland Careers Service, which has

A Buncrana Councillor is asking why it took a team of army explosives experts six hours to get to the town yesterday. The specialist team travelled by helicopter to Inishowen after a suspected pipe bomb was found on a wall outside Tullyarvan Mill in Buncrana. The device was reported at 10.30 yesterday morning, but wasn’t

The Chair of Donegal County Council’s Housing Committee says the council should be given scope by the government to acquire houses and address the large waiting list for housing in the county. Cllr Dessie Larkin was speaking after Housing Minister Jan O’Sullivan announced a supplementary allocation for the council of just over 354,000 euro which

Donegal Deputy Joe Mc Hugh is meeting with the head of HSE West today to get an update of the restoration of services at Letterkenny General Hospital. Work is continuing with decontamination and sterilisation of equipment, re-stocking of critical supplies and re-establishment of diagnostic radiological capability at the facility which was devasted by floods earlier

Missing woman Siobhan Mc Nulty has been located safe and well in Dublin. The 44 year old was reported missing yestersday having last been seen in the Knocknamona area of Letterkenny on Monday last.

There was a unique cultural link up between Derry and Kerry following a visit to the city by the 32 Rose of Tralee contestants. The North’s Deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness, says the people of Derry are indebted to the organisers of the festival for bringing the roses to the UK City of Culture. The

Gardai are urging caution on the roads around Letterkenny after an oil spill last night. Several minor collisions have been reported overnight and this morning from the Mountain Top to the Port Road via Business Park Road. Donegal County Council is dealing with the spillage, but gardai are urging continued care.

Gardai investigating the alleged cyberbullying of Erin Gallagher and Ciara Pugsley are reportedly close to indentifying the computers used. Ask FM, which has been associated with the teens’ tragic deaths, says its released the IP addresses linked to the bullying messages. 13 year old Erin from Ballybofey, and 15 year old Ciara from Leitrim took

A new survey has underlined once again the drop off in the construction industry in County Donegal. The GeoDirectory has recorded 31% decrease in new buildings in Donegal in first half of 2013. 224 new residential and commercial buildings were recorded in Donegal for the first six months of 2013, according to new figures released

Letterkenny Youth Information Centre will provide a phone helpline for those receiving Leaving Cert results today and tomorrow. Staff at the Port Road based centre will also be available for young people and parents to bring along any queries that may arise following students receiving their results. Youth Information Coordinator, Gareth Gibson is also keen

It’s been confirmed that work is to begin on a £70,000 safety scheme on the B48 Lisnarragh Road, Plumbridge. The scheme will see a particularly bendy section of the Lisnarragh Road at Devine’s Memorials realigned allowing road traffic users a clear line of sight. The North’s Roads Minister Danny Kennedy has announced the scheme would

Army bomb disposal experts have declared a suspected pipe bomb in Buncrana a false alarm. They were called to the scene at Tullyarvan Mill in the Town after the discovery of a suspicious object on Wednesday morning. The scene was sealed off with some people told to remain inside the Mill  for their own safety

The Department of Social Protection says it’s office in Letterkenny is processing over 50,000 additional claims for payment under the Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance, with half of those claims already processed, including all claims received in June. The dedicated section on Olover Plunkett Road is processing claims which were received on 19July

The new Finn Vally Leisure Centre in Stranorlar will open to the public this weekend. The long awaited opening of the swimming pool and gym facilities will finally open after decades of campaigning locally for the facility. The new leisure centre has created 15 new jobs. Finn Valley Athletics Club also already employs 15 staff.

The family of the Irish woman being held on drugs charges in Peru says they are is confident she will be fully exonherated. The family of Michaella McCollum Connolly from Dungannon have issued a statement saying they are making arrangements to travel to Peru to visit her. She and her Scottish friend Melissa Reid stand

Over 55,000 Leaving Certificate students are receiving their exam results today, just over 2,000 of them in Donegal. 1,959 students sat the Leaving Certificate exam in June, another 133 sat the Leaving Cert Applied. The number of candidates sitting the tests this year fell to its lowest level since 2007 – but the uptake for

Fianna Fáil says the government needs to do more to make college more affordable. The calls comes after a survey by the Irish League of Credit Unions revealed it can cost up to 950 euro per month to send a student to college. Eight out of ten parents save for an average of eight years