Author name: oisinkelly

A former mayor of Donegal says the government and NRA are treating Donegal with contempt after it emerged that several National and Secondary Road projects are being shelved because of a lack of funds. Cllr Cora Harvey says neither the government nor the NRA has informed Donegal County Council of the situation, and the council […]

Gardai have revealed that a number of people in Donegal have been caught in so called phishing scams with a new warning being issued to the public to be vigilant. The scam involves people being encouraged to divulge their personal and banking information though the post and via email. Donegal’s crime prevention officer, Sergeant Paul

Donegal’s Road Safety officer has questioned how effective proposals to make driving instruction compulsory in schools would be in making Irish roads safer. That was one of the proposals the cross party road safety Oireachtas committee suggested to Transport Minister Leo Varadkar in its submission on new road traffic laws. However Donegal’s Road Safety Officer

Donegal will be one of the worst affected counties in the country by today’s confirmation that work on all major new road projects is being suspended because of spending cutbacks. Roads projects affected in Donegal include the N56 Mountcharles to Inver Road which was to comprise of 4.9 Killometeres of new road eliminateing a number

Donegal Fianna Fail Deputy Charlie McConologue has said he would have ‘no problem’ with his party backing Gay Byrne if he chose to run for the presidency. Reports suggest that discussions have been ongoing between Fianna Fail and the veteran broadcaster. It is understood Fianna Fail  would ensure Mr Byrne secured the support of the 20

Planned legislation on septic tanks will be discussed at a series of public meetings this week. Up to half a million rural dwellers could be affected if the government decides to introduce mandatory inspections for septic tanks. It’s reported that registration fees of up to 300 euro for each household could be imposed when the

A new search for missing Castlederg teenager Arlene Arkinson will begin in September. The 15 year-old disappeared in 1994 – she was last seen after attending a disco in Bundoran with friends. In November of last year, the PSNI  told a preliminary hearing at the coroner’s court that its investigation into the disappearance of teenager

The head of Oideas Gael in Glencolmcille says the death of Derry born sculptor Eamon O’Doherty last week has robbed Donegal of one if the conty’s best friends and supporters. Liam O’Cuinnegain, who also chairs Udaras na Gaeltachta says Eamon O’Doherty was a great supporter of ther arts in Donegal, and did much to document

An 18 year old Derryman has been freed on bail after admitting possessing dangerous weapons in the city in the early hours of yesterday morning. Derry Magistrates Court was told the how police used a Taser gun on Noel Cairns, of Glassagh Park, after Cairns was seen standing in the middle of the road holding

The President of the Irish Association of Emergency Medicine says Letterkenny General Hospital’s Emergency Department could be compromised by the HSE decision to freeze recruitment at all levels. The IAEM says it’s especially worried that the hiring of essential frontline staff to man 24 hour emergency departments will be prohibited from August 15th. Presidnet Fergal

The Donegal Sexual Abuse and Rape Crisis Centre is appealing for more volunteers. The appeal comes as the centre reports a 35% rise in demand for its services in the first six months of this year. 921 people called the helpline, and 81 new clients have accessed the service between January and June. Centre Director

The Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman is investigating the use of a taser against an 18 year old man in Derry at the weekend. Police were responding to a call in the Westland Street area when the taser was used. Police say an officer discharged the taser while attending an incident, and an 18 year old

Funnel clouds which can cause tornadoes were spotted over Co Donegal yesterday. Andrew Doherty took this picture of the funnell cloud over Ballyhallion Hill in Clonmany. He says he found the clouds quite strange, as there wasn’t much wind in the area at the time.

Sinn Féin MP Martin McGuinness has raised the case of the prisoner Brendan Lillis with the Irish Government. Mr McGuinness, who is Stormont’s Deputy First Minister, says Brendan Lillis is seriously ill and should be released from Maghaberry jail’s hospital immediately. A protest was held in Strabane yesterday for Mr Lillis. A number of people

A 26 year old Omagh man has been remanded in custody at a special court in the town on a charge of attempted murder. Mark McGlone of Castleview Pk, Omagh, was charged with attempting to murder Noel Knox in the Cellar Bar, Bridge St, Omagh, in the early hours of Friday morning. The court heard

Shots have been fired at a house in Derry. It happened at Mimosa Court in Gobnascale just after 23:00 BST on Friday night. The 41-year-old man who lives in the house is not believed to be injured. Police are still trying to establish a motive for the attack and have appealed for information.

70 years after a Spitfire took off from runway 02 at RAF Eglinton, its tailwheel finally touched down again yesterday on the same runway at the City of Derry Airport. The Spitfire was successfully excavated in June this year from a boggy moor on the Inishowen peninsula. Jonny McNee who organised this first licenced excavation

Senator Jimmy Harte is calling for a new website, which allows the public to directly report problems like potholes and graffiti to their local authority, to be rolled out in Donegal as soon as possible. Fix your street dot ie went live in a trial version for the South Dublin County area. It is planned

A 26 year old man is due in court in Omagh later charged in connection with the attempted murder of a man in the town yesterday. The 47 year old victim received cuts to his throat and face during the attack at a pub in Omagh’s Bridge Street in the early hours of yesterday morning.

Two men arrested in Derry earlier this week have appeared in court today. 24 year old Mark Kerr of Carrabane Walk and 44 year old Tony Taylor of Bishops Street were both charged with possesion of a .22 rifle with intent to endanger life on August 2nd. They were both remanded in custody to appear

The Donegal Mountain Rescue Team has rescued two people from Muckish. The 44 year old man and 33 year old woman had climbed the Miners’ Track, and were walking on the top of the mountain with their dog when they became lost in heavy fog. The rescue team responded to a 999 call at 6.30,

A leading Donegal Barrister says the people of Donegal are being ill-served by the current court facilities in Letterkenny with calls for a new court house to be progressed. Last year Judge John O’Hagan described the physical conditions at the court as “dreadful” and the crowded courtroom was at times verging on a health and

A Newtowncunningham Councillor says he had previously raised concerns about a derelict HSE building in the town which was damaged by fire last night. Gardai are investigating the fire at “The Castle”, which was reported at 1 o’clock this morning. Local Cllr Paul Canning says the building has been derelict for some time, and is

A leading family lawyer in the North is calling on the Stormont Executive to introduce clear guidelines for parents about leaving children at home alone. It comes after the social services in Dungannon, Co. Tyrone intervened when 4 children, aged between 5 and 14, were left at home when their parents went on holiday. Lawyer

The number of drivers getting penalty points for speeding is on the increase, with figures for this year expected to surpass the numbers caught speeding in 2010. The figures, obtained from a Dail question by Donegal North East Deputy Joe McHugh, show that in the first six months of this year over 96,000 drivers have

The Government has allocated funding of 50,000 euro for the exploratory excavation of a possible Spanish Armada wreck off the coast of Burtonport. Research to date has shown the wreck, in Rutland Bay, is likely to be part of the Spanish Armada which perished of the coast of Ireland in the 16 centaury. It is

Police believe five people arrested in Newtownstewart on Tuesday are part of a criminal gang responsible for a spate of burglaries north and south of the border. The two men, two youths and a woman were arrested following a botched attempt to steal an ATM machine in Dungiven on Monday last. The five, all members

Two men are due in court in Derry this morning, charged under the Terrorism Act. The pair, aged 43 and 23, are charged with possession of firearms with intent to endanger life. The arrests were made after a car was rammed by police on the Foyle Road, on Tuesday night. The 23 year old was

Gardai are investigating a fire which caused extensive damage to an unoccupied house in the Newtowncunningham area. The house, a large building known locally as “The Castle”, was reported to be on fire at 1 o’clock this morning. Fire tenders from both sides of the border were called to the scene. Gardai have confirmed they

A school principal and Donegal INTO committee member says any proposal to increase pupil teacher ratios will impact on the quality of education at primary school, and see Ireland’s OECD scores fall further. Liam Mc Gowan says this will cause further damage to Ireland’s international reputation at a time when education is more important than

A school principal and Donegal INTO committee member says any proposal to increase pupil teacher ratios will impact on the quality of education at primary school, and see Ireland’s OECD scores fall further. Liam Mc Gowan says this will cause further damage to Ireland’s international reputation at a time when education is more important than

A priest in Donegal is predicting that lay people will have to become more and more involved in the running of parishes. Raphoe Communications Officer Fr Paddy Dunne says a number of parishes in the diocese do not have a full time priest, and while there is no crisis in the short term, radical changes

Gardai and An Post have launched investigations into alleged “irregularities” at Laghey Post Office. However, this has not been confirmed by An Post but Gardai in Ballyshannon have confirmed that they have received a complaint and an investigation is underway. The Post Office in the South Donegal village closed on July 6. It’s understood that

A social networking page, where photos of police had been posted, has been pulled – amid concerns it could have been used to single out officers to be murdered. It followed condemnation from the Police Federation – which expressed fears details gathered on officers could be used in murder bids. It’s not yet clear whether

Reports today suggest that garda investigations into child sex abuse allegations in west Donegal are focusing on up to seven suspects. Greg Harkin reports in today’s Irish Independent that Gardai are also planning to re-interview convicted paedophile Michael Ferry. A number of men in the Gweedore area who claim they were sexually abused when they

It’s emerged that pictures of police officers are being published on a Facebook site which claims the PSNI is harassing republicans. The site encourages members to post images and details of police operations across Northern Ireland. It’s believed the site has been set up by republicans living in Counties Derry and Tyrone, but people from

Donegal County Council, the Donegal VEC and the LYIT are amongst groups ‘named and shamed’ for failing to buy cut-price stationery that could save taxpayers up to €2.5m a year. Half of local authorities,  just 19 of the 33 Vocational Education Committees and only one I.T. have availed of a contract enabling them to purchase

The Town Councils in Letterkenny and Buncrana are to receive extra allocations for improvements to footpaths. The money from the Smart Travel Initiative is additional to the € 302,000 announced last month for Donegal, and is coming from savings made on projects elsewhere. Both town councils will each receive an extra €50,000. Senator Jimmy Harte

Donegal County Council will learn by years end if An Bord Pleanala will approve its plans for linkages to the new A5 road project. The project in the north, financially backed by governments on both sides of the border, will see an upgrade to the entire A5 to dual-carriageway from near Aughnacloy, via Omagh and

Following the decision by Senator David Norris to scrap his presidential campaign sources close to Dana Rosemary Scallan have indicated to Highland Radio News that she is to seek the backing of TD’s and Senators to enter the race. Ms Scallon was an unsuccessful candidate in the 1997 Presidential election, she was subsequently elected as

Foyle Road in Derry has reopened after Army technical officers completed their examination of a suspicious object. It was found last night during a planned operation against dissident republican activity. During the operation, a car was stopped close to the junction with Ferguson Street, and three men aged 54, 43, 23 were detained, along with

Thousands of people are having to endure lengthy waiting times for treatment at Altnagelvin Hospital’s A&E Department according to new figures published in Stormont. The figures reveal that in the three months between April and June, Altnagelvin failed to meet targets to treat, admit or discharge patients within a four hour time frame. According to

Thousands of people are having to endure lengthy waiting times for treatment at Altnagelvin Hospital’s A&E Department according to new figures published in Stormont. The figures reveal that in the three months between April and June, Altnagelvin failed to meet targets to treat, admit or discharge patients within a four hour time frame. According to

Planning permission has been granted for a proposed new Waste Water Treatment Plant at Ballyness, Falcarragh, with a campaign to secure funding now underway. Councillors say at present, there are unacceptable levels of effluent in the bay, and the way is now clear for the construction of the new plant, which is set to cost

Hundreds of people attended a vigil last night for the Lifford man David Colhoun, who has been missing for more than two months. The 22-year-old has not been seen since he escaped from police custody in Strabane on 22 May. Hundreds of friends and neighbours attended the vigil along the Lifford and Strabane river bank

Four people have been arrested in Derry in connection with dissident republican activity. Three men aged 54, 42 and 23 and a 16 year old boy were detained in the Brandywell area last night. Police say a firearm was also recovered during the operation.