Author name: oisinkelly

Police in Foyle have launched Operation Relentless – an operation that focuses on tracking down those people who have failed to turn up at court and are wanted for criminal offences. Area Commander Chief Inspector Jon Burrows says the operation has been running since the beginning of October and to date police have arrested 44 […]

The annual Road Safe Road Show takes place over the next two days in Letterkenny, with over 3,000 Transition Year students attending, along with students from Donegal Youth-reach and Fas. The show is now in its fourth year, and again features hard hitting testimony from emergency service personnel who attend crash scenes and people affected

A Donegal Deputy claims up to 10% of the County could be left with a blank television screen when the analogue service is switched off next year. It was confirmed at the weekend that analogue services will be switched off on 24th October 2012 with terrestrial TV then only available with a digital TV or

A post-mortem examination on the body of County Donegal teenager Caolan Page is due to be carried out this morning. The 19 year old from Upper Kildrum in Carrigans was discovered in Magazine Street, Derry, early on Saturday morning. Meanwhile, thousands of people have paid their respects to the Donegal teenager on a Facebook page

Police in Derry say a Poast Mortem examination on the body of 19 year old Caolan Page who died in mysterious circumstances in the city over the weekend will not now take place until tomorrow. A spokesperson says once the PM has been completed, initial results from it are likely to inform the direction of

A man allegedly told his former partner he would cut her throat and ‘cut her into little pieces’ after she refused to give him money Derry Magistrate’s Court heard today. 40 year old Charles O’Donnell of 19, Market Street was charged with assaulting the woman and making threats to kill against her on October 15th.

3,000 homes and businesses in Derry were left without power for a time this afternoon. Just after 12 noon, Northern Ireland Electricity says damage was caused to an underground electricity cable by a third party. The areas affected included Steelstown, Shantallow and Gransha. The fault was repaired and supplies have been restored.

Fine Gael Deputy Joe McHugh is asking the people of Donegal to offer their solutions to the mortgage arrears problem. On Wednesday  the Dáil will debate the Keane Report on Mortgage Arrears which was  published last Wednesday by the Minister for Finance. Deputy McHugh is asking people to forward to him their experiences of being

Farmers in Donegal are being urged to attend a meeting on Tuesday night at which the issue of CAP reform will top the agenda. The meeting is organised by the ICSA’s Donegal branch, but  farmers who are not members of the organisation are also encouraged to attend. John Barron, the ICSA’s Rural Development Chair, says

The government has today awarded new oil and gas exploration licences for the Rockall and Slyne basins off the west and Northwest  coast. Licences were granted for the Porcupine basin off the south east coast. Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Pat Rabbitte said the licences were granted following an assessment of 15 applications

Police have confirmed that a post mortem will take place later today in effort to determine what led to death of a young Donegal man in Derry at the weekend 19 year old Caolan Page was found collapsed in the Magazine Street area of the city in the early hours of Saturday morning. He died

Gardai have made two major seizures of fireworks in the Moville area. On Thursday, as part of a planned search, gardai seized are large quantity of fireworks from a house in Moville. On Friday a car was stopped in the area and 700 bangers and 500 fireworks were found in the vehicle. A man was

Presidential candidate Martin McGuinness was verbally abused as he campaigned at Letterkenny’s St Eunan’s cathedral yesterday. Mr McGuinness was verbally set upon by a Ballybofey man who had been canvassing for Dana outside the Cathedral. Deputy Padraig McLaughlin, who was canvassing along with Martin McGuinness yesterday, said it was an unfortunate incident:

Gardai continue to search for a man who escaped after a high speed car chase in Letterkenny at the weekend. Gardai began a pursuit of a vehicle yesterday afternoon after it was noticed speeding in the Glenswilly direction. The man abandoned the car in the Breenagh area and fled on foot through fields.

A prominent anti-drugs campaigner in Donegal has again hit out at the government for failing to tackle the issue of drug driving. PJ Blake was speaking after the EU Night without Accident initiative was rolled out at two Letterkenny clubs on Saturday night. It involved designated drivers being given wristbands to receive free soft drinks

The New York State American Irish Legislators Society has been visiting Donegal as part of a one week Irish trip. County Mayor Noel Mc Bride met with the group in Letterkenny today, saying it was a very good exchange. The society was founded in 1973 and raises money for educational and cultural Irish programs. Cllr

The Inishowen based founder of the road safety organisation PARC says she believes Transport Minister Leo Varadker is determined to address loopholes in current law under which people are avoiding penalty points. Susan Grey says the minister has also pledged to ensure that definitive legislation is in place under which all injuried drivers at crash

The 19 year old Donegal man found unconscious in Derry City Centre in the early hours of yesterday has died. The man, named locally as Caolan Page from Upper Kildrum, Carrigans was found  in Magazine Street. It’s understood he had been drinking in a local bar before he was found, with speculation that he may

A young Donegal man remains  in a critical condition after an incident Derry on Saturday night. Police have told Highland Radio News that they are investigating the discovery of an unconscious man in the Magazine Street area, and will make no further comment. Police are still trying to determine how the man suffered his injuries.

The government has been called on to re-instate funding previously announced for an Autism Spectrum Disorder Unit for the Finn Valley college. 150,000 euro was approved for the unit in 2008, however it was not drawn down and as a result the funding was pulled. Raising the issue, Senator Brian O’Domhnail says the Unit is

Young people heading out to party tonight are being encouraged to appoint a designated driver to take them home. It’s part of “EU Night Without Accident”, a scheme run by young people aimed at promoting responsible driving. Letterkenny is one of seven areas where the scheme is being rolled out tonight, with volunteers in place

Following an earlier TV appearance, Dana released the following statement: A most despicable and malicious campaign of hatred is currently being directed at myself and my family. I brought this into the public domain for the following reason; last week I was falsely accused of being a part of a deceptive cover-up regarding my Irish/

Dana’s has confirmed, what she calls, malicious and vile allegations made against a member of her family were of “a sexual nature” – but she says she’s to stay in the Presidential race. The Presidential hopeful says she has no doubt an attempt was made to destroy her character and try and force her out

A man from Newtowncunningham in County Donegal has appeared at Derry Magistrate’s Court charged with driving with excess alcohol and stealing a quantity of scrap metal in the early hours of this morning (Friday) Michael Houston (33) of 1, Glacken Flats, Newtowncunningham admitted both charges. The court was told that police received a call at

The manager of Letterkenny General Hospital has said that the announcement by Deputy Joe McHugh that a new rapid Access Prostate Cancer Clinic will open at Letterkenny General in three weeks, was a little early. Sean Murphy says that while he expects the unit to open on November the 4th, negotiations to provide the service

The operator of one of Donegal’s privately run speed camera vans says that negative reports of their actions are putting their well being in Danger. It follows a report in the Inishowen Independent under headline ‘Speed Cameras target Nowdoc’ The reports states that a Nowdoc member was caught speeding by a camera van while responding

Presidential candidate Michael D Higgins says he’s expecting to poll very well in Donegal in the upcoming election. While he is not expecting to top the poll, he does believe he will poll substantially. The Labour candidate is on his second official visit to Donegal today, he visited Letterkenny IT earlier this morning, and is

A new rapid Access Prostate Cancer Clinic will open at Letterkenny General Hospital in three weeks time. The clinic will cater for at least 150 Donegal men every year and avoid them having to travel to Galway on numerous occasions for diagnosis. The clinic would open on November 4. Betty Holmes, from Donegal Action for

The Chairman of Letterkennys Joint Policing Committee has said that two incidents here in the early hours of yesterday morning demonstrate that Letterkenny couldn’t deal with a cut in Garda numbers. 14 people were arrested following a disturbance in the Thornberry area at around 530am yesterday morning and a number of premises on Letterkennys Main

RTÉ says it has received more than 100 complaints about Wednesday’ s Prime Time debate between the presidential candidates. Many of the phone calls and e-mails alleged that Martin McGuinness was unfairly treated by presenter Miriam O Callaghan, who asked the Sinn Féin candidate a series of questions about his IRA membership and his knowledge

A centre set up to help people deal with the Omagh bomb is to close. The Omagh-based Northern Ireland Centre for Trauma and Transformation will be shut in December. The closure follows difficulties in securing long-term funding and recruiting key staff. A spokesperson said the decision had been taken “with a heavy heart”, but it

A Buncrana councillor says all local authorities in the county must come together in a bid to have what he believes to be an unfair anomaly in housing rules addressed. Donegal County Council has already had discussions on the fact that some tenants cannot get a grant to furnish and equip their accommodation, with speculation

About 250 people took part in a rally in Derry yesterday evening to protest against Wednesday night’s bomb attack on the City of Culture offices. Church leaders, politicians, and representatives from the arts sector were among the crowd who gathered in the city. Meanwhile the PSNI have said they believe the Real IRA were behind

It’s emerged that Social Welfare and Revenue inspectors have carried out a series of raids in Donegal as part of a clampdown on social welfare fraud announced last week by Minister Joan Burton. In a statement issued this afternoon, the Department of Social Protection confirmed that Revenue officials and Social Welfare Inspectors from the Department’s

A number of premises on Letterkenny Main Street had their windows smashed overnight. It is understood that at least 5 premises were targeted by an individual man. The man was brought to the attention of the gardai by a passer-by, it is not confirmed if he was arrested at the scene. Local resident Mark witnessed

Gardai have arrested 13 people following a disturbance in the Thornberry area in Letterkenny. Gardai initially responded to an alleged assault at 5.30 this morning, but it is understood that matters developed. Locals reported a large number of gardai in the area at the time of the incident, some wearing riot gear. A garda spokesperson

Buncrana Town Council has been told that if a spur from Project Kelvin is extended into the town, the cost of connecting to the town’s Metropolitan Area Network could be cut by as much as 50%. The issue was raised in the chamber by Cllr Lee Tedstone, who is seeking a workshop on the issue

The explosion happened at 22:45  in Guildhall Square on Wednesday. Police received information that the bomb had been left there and they had just an hour to evacuate the area. There are no reports of any injuries. But it’s understood there was minor damage to the building. It is the second attack at the offices

Dana’s continuation in the Presidential race remains unclear this morning after a bizarre announcement by the Presidential candidate last night. Towards the end of the live TV debate she read from a prepared statement, claiming “vile and false” allegations were being made against a member of her family, and attempts were being made to implicate

Gardai have been invloved in a major operation in the Thornberry area of Letterkenny this morning. Locals reported seeing numerous gardai attend the scene, some dressed in public order gear. The operation has now concluded – Gardai have yet to confirm what the nature of this morning’s operation was but it is understood to public

The manager of a local debt solutions company has called the Keane report laughable. The report rules out blanket debt forgiveness or negative equity forgiveness – on the basis that it would be impossible to effectively target those most in need. Its main proposals are for trade-down mortgages, split mortgages and sale by agreement. And

Plans to highlight the links between the former US Speaker Tipp O’Neill and Inishowen have moved on with the establishment of a Commemoration Committee. The committee has now identified three projects to pursue, a Tipp O’Neill Diaspora Award, a bursary and a summer school. It’s also planned to re-point a memorial stone located in the

Police have confirmed that a bomb has exploded at the City of Culture offices in Derry. There are no reports of any injuries. Shipquay Street in the city centre remains closed (weds 11pm)  and motorists have been asked to avoid the area. In January of this year there was a small explosion which damaged a

The remains of a wooden garden shed have been dumped at a cemetery in Castlederg. It is believed a tractor and trailer with the wood were driven into the cemetery on the Drumquin Road. The items were then dumped on a plot laid out for new graves, beside a council “no dumping” sign. Councillor Derek

Donegal North East Deputy Joe Mc Hugh had told the Dail that the community focus of the Credit Union movement must be kept in mind when new legislation is being considered. Deputy Mc Hugh was speaking during a debate on a number of amendments to the provisions for Credit Unions in the new Central Bank

The Irish Seal Sanctuary has received reports of a number of suspicious deaths of seals in Donegal. Five dead seals were found near Rosbeg and one at Narin. Meanwhile there has also been three seals found dead in Waterford, plus a number of anecdotal reports of dead seals in Wexford and Clare. The ISS says