Author name: oisinkelly

A week after the horrific crash in Inishowen which saw eight men lose their lives, The Mayor of Buncrana says the focus will now be on ensuring that there are counselling services available for the bereaved families and the wider community. The HSE has already been working with the Buncrana Community Combatting Suicide Group to […]

A grant of almost €2million has been awarded for the development of facilities at Sliabh Liag in South West Donegal. The money will be used to improve road access and parking facilities, as well as marking out walking routes and building better visitors’ facilities Welcoming the announcement, Tanaiste Mary Coughlan said the intention is to

The 30th annual MacGill Summer School was officially opened in Glenties last night by former Taoiseach Dr Garret Fitzgerald, followed by the 10th annual John Hume Lecture, which was delivered by the North’s Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness. The theme of this year’s school is Reforming the Republic – Issues of Politics, Economics and Accountability.

A taxi driver has been shot in both legs in Strabane. The man had arrived pick up a fare in Glebe Gardens at 11 o’clock last night when he was dragged from his car by a number of men. He was beaten and shot once in the left thigh. When he attemped to escape, he

Police investigating dissident republican activity have made four new arrests in Derry. They men, aged 36, 38, 42 and 44, were arrested just before midnight last night and brought to Antrim police station for questioning. A week ago, five men were arrested on the Louth Armagh border on suspicion of trying to move explosives across

Provisional figures suggest MRSA incidents are falling, with 14 cases at Letterkenny General Hospital during 2009, compared to 20 the previous year. The highest number of cases was recorded at Galway University Hospital, with 35 infections. In total, there were 335 cases around the country last year compared to 439 in 2008.

Co-operating for Cancer Care NorthWest has welcomed the news that two Access Officers have been appointed to the the National Cancer Screening Service. The officers’ role will be to co-ordinate assistance for women with disabilities to access BreastCheck and CervicalCheck services. CCC-NW say that since the roll-out of BreastCheck and CervicalCheck in Donegal, they have

The eight victims of the Co Donegal road crash have all been laid to rest. The funeral of 23 year old James McEleney – the last of the men who died to be buried – took place in Clonmany this morning. Hundreds of people from across the Inishowen Peninsula again turned out for the mass

Northwest MEP Marion Harking claimed new planning guidelines being introduced by government will effectively lead to the depopulation of rural Ireland. Minister Ciaran Cuffe announced the new legislation saying it aims to ensure that the right types of development are built in the right places at the right time. But Ms Harkin says that its

The Voice of Older People Donegal say they believe the government will not reduce the pension in December’s budget. There has been wide scale speculation that the government will either cut or means test the pension with a view to helping address the country’s current financial hardship. But V.O.P Donegal says that is very unlikely.

Forty-five jobs are set to go at a financial services company in Derry. HML has said it is to reduce its workforce by 80 across the UK, with 45 redundancies earmarked for Derry. The company said it had started a 30-day consultation period with its employees and no redundancies would come before 15 August. HML,

Derry has been chosen as the UK’s first City of Culture. The announcement was broadcast live from Liverpool on the BBC’s The One Show last night. Derry, which was short-listed alongside Birmingham, Sheffield and Norwich, will take the mantle in 2013. Creative Advisor for the city of Culture Team, Noelle McAlinden, says its great news,

Derry will find out in a few hours time if it is to be named the UK’s first City of Culture. The winning city will be announced on tonight’s ‘One Show’ on BBC 1, which is aired between 7 – 730pm. Derry faces competition from Sheffield, Norwich and Birmingham. Meanwhile, Bookmakers William Hill have stopped

The father of one of the victims of the Co Donegal road crash says his family does not blame the driver of the Volkswagen Passat – or anyone else – for the loss of their son and brother. Eamonn Sweeney made the remarks during the funeral of his 19 year old son Ciaran in Clonmany

A sex offender arrested in County Cavan two weeks ago after going missing in Lancashire has been jailed for four months in the Irish Republic. 56 year-old William Paden, origianlly from the North, was sentenced at Cavan District Court for breaching the Republic’s sex offenders legislation. William Paden, was arrested in Ballyhaise on 30 June

The Chief Celebrant at the funeral of one of the victims of Sunday night’s road crash in Inishowen is appealing to young people to remember they are not indestructible. Fr John Walsh made the comments at the requiem mass for 22 year old Eamonn McDaid from Buncrana, who was killed along with seven other in

The US health insurer UnitedHealth Group is to expand its operation in Letterkenny with the creation of 200 new jobs. The announcement, made this morning, is supported by the Irish Government with the aid of IDA. The Minneapolis-based health insurer currently employs 340 people in IT and medical claims processing at its Letterkenny site. Managing

The Letterkenny native who died earlier this week in a motorcycle crash in Switzerland has been named as Bill Parke from London, and formerly of Garryharry. Arrangements are being made to return his remains to Garryharry, and his family are requesting privacy until that has been done.

Gardai have confirmed they are not treating the death of a 19 year old woman in Convoy as suspicious. The woman was found unconscious at her home early yesterday afternoon. She was rushed to Letterkenny General Hospital, where attempts were made to revive her. However, she died in the hospital at 7 o’clock last night.

An announcement is expected this morning of almost 200 new jobs for Letterkenny. United Healthcare, formerly Pacificare, are expected to employ 190 more people between now and the end of next year, bring their total workforce to 530. A formal announcement is understood to be imminent. The IDA has already predicted 10-thousand new jobs this

The three North West MEPs have scored highly in a table ranking the European Parliament’s 736 MEPs. Fine Gael’s Jim Higgins is ranked19th, with 87% attendence and an activity level 376% of  the EU average. Independent Marian Harkin is ranked 84th, with 93% attendence and an activity level 202% of the EU average. Fianna Fail’s

The Children’s ombudsman Emily Logan says uncertainty over the dates of by-elections should not be allowed impact on the date of the proposed Childrens’ Rights Referendum. It had been speculated that the referendum would take place in autumn of this year, but thjere are now fears that will drag into next year. There are three

The chief celebrant at the funeral of one of the eight victims of Sundays night’s road crash in Donegal says no words can describe the devastation being felt by the family and friends of those who died. Two funerals have taken place this morning, with a third taking place this afternoon. At 10 o’clock this

A Letterkenny Town Councillor has said elected representatives have a responsibility not to over state the problem of anti-social behaviour in the town’s parks. Councillor Ciaran Brogan was speaking after fellow councillor Tom Crosson brought forward an motion which called for action to be taken to address ‘continued reports of anti social behaviour in the

Inishowen will fall silent today, as three of the eight funerals of the men who died in Sundays horrific road accident take place. The first of the funerals, that of 66-year-old Hugh Friel, will take place at St Michaels Church in Urris, Clonmany at 10 o clock this morning. He was the sole occupant of

The road between Clonmany and Buncrana , where eight men were killed in a crash on Sunday night, has reopened. The families of seven of the eight men visited the scene privately before it was reopened to the public at 10pm on Tuesday night. Some of them left flowers in memory of their loved ones.

The police have said the rioting in the Bogside last night and in the early hours of this morning was the “worst in a decade” in Derry. A masked gunman fired shots at police shortly after 1 o clock this morning. Petrol bombs were thrown at a police patrol car which was on fire when

A 42 year-old man originally from Letterkenny has died in a motorcycle crash in Switzerland. The man, who had moved to London, is understood to have been on a biking holiday with friends from Donegal when his motorcycle collided with another vehicle. The man’s name has not yet been released.

A helpline has been established in Buncrana to help people in Inishowen come to terms with the enormity of the tragedy. It’s being coordinated by the HSE, using structures put in place by the support group “Buncrana Community Combatting Suicide”. The number of the line is 087 279 8412. A support service is being offered

The Garda Commissioner has offered his condolences to the bereaved families and the coounity of Inishowen following Sunday night’s horrific crash which has left eight people dead. Facthna Murphy confirmed it was the “worst fatality count” from a single accident in the country’s history. The mother of a 21 year old man killed in an

The Clonmany to Buncrana Road remains closed this morning as investigations continue into Sunday night’s crash which claimed the lives of eight men. A ninth man, the sole survivor of the crash, remains in a stable condition in hospital this morning. The Road Safety Authority has described it as the ‘worst road accident in the

New figures show that house prices in County Donegal fell by 8%, one of the largest declines in the country. The average asking in Donegal in the second quarter of 2010 was €183,000, a fall of €86,000 from the peak. The figures from daft.ie show that you can buy a house in Donegal for 40

The Minister for Justice and Law Reform, Mr Dermot Ahern T.D., has announced the establishment of an Advisory Committee on Garda Interviewing of suspects following recommendations of the Morris Tribunal. The make up of the committee includes representatives of the Department of Justice, the Law Society, the Irish Human Rights Commission and An Garda Siochana.

Three buses bound for Donegal have been targeted by stone throwers in Strabane with one local councillor stating that it was pure luck that a collision didn’t take place as a result. Councillor Brian McMahon says he believes the buses, which were travelling on the Strabane bypass, were targeted because the stone throwers thought they

There are calls for more local input in to the management of the Aura Leisure Centre in Letterkenny after claims it is underperforming in terms of attracting major events and concerts. At this months Letterkenny Town Council meeting it was claimed that not enough major events are being hosted at the multi million euro development

The County Manager has confirmed that work on the much anticipated Letterkenny Sewerage Scheme/ Waste Water Treatment plant could start in a matter of weeks. Seamus Neely has confirmed that the contract for the design build and operate project is close to being finalised with work is due to start in under two months. The

The names of the deceased in Sunday night’s  collision on the Clonmany to Buncrana Road have been released by Gardai. Those travelling in the black Volkswagen Passatt were – Paul Doherty, Ardagh, Ballyliffin 19 James Mc Eleney, Minaduff, Clonmany 23 Eamon Mc Daid, Cruckahheny, Ballymagan, Buncrana 22 Damien Mc Laughlin, Umrican, Buncrana 21 Mark Mc

Donegal Senator Pearse Doherty is at the High Court today seeking a Judicial Review into the government’s failure to hold the Donegal South West By-Election. Senator Doherty, who will contest the by-election on behalf of Sinn Fein, says the refusal of the government to name the date of the poll is unlawful, and against the

Seven new jobs are being created on the Udaras na Gaeltachta Industrial Estate in Fintown by Charles Bonnar and Sons. The company, which supplies oil and solid fuel cookers and stoves, has established a new base where it will undertake production and assembly of its products. The new facility was officially opened by Dr Joe

Up to 200 new jobs could be confirmed for Donegal within a matter of days. Deputy Niall Blaney says after lengthy discussions with Enterprise Minister Batt O’Keefe, he’s confident a significant announcement is imminent of high end jobs in the pharmaceutical sector. However, he wouldn’t be drawn on the identity of the company behind the

Eight people have been killed in a two car collision in Inishowen. The two car collision happened at Glasmullen, on the Buncrana to Clonmany road, at around twenty to eleven last night. Gardai say seven occupants of a black Volkswagen Passat along with the driver of a second car a red Toyota Corolla were killed

Thousands of members of the Orange Order’s only festival march in the Republic today spoke of looking forward to the expected Dublin visit of Queen Elizabeth of England next year. More than 12,000 marchers with 30 bands paraded through two kilometres of country roads to their annual pre-12th beachside gathering at Rossnowlagh. The main festival

The High Court has blocked the Health and Safety Authority from investigating the death of Donegal woman Sinead McDaid. Sinead, from Carndonagh died in a single-vehicle accident  June 12, 2001 when her car skidded and crashed at Dunross between Culdaff and Malin. Her family maintain it had occurred as a result of loose chipping and

The Department of Foreign Affairs has urged the media to respect the privacy of a Donegal family which has, through no fault of their own, been caught up in a case of fraudulent use of a passport. Replacement passports have now been issued to Carndonagh man Eunan Gerard Doherty and his family. In a statement,

Ireland’s first purpose built training facility for the off-shore oil and gas industry has been officially opened in Falcarragh by Tanaiste Mary Coughlan. Effective Offshore Ltd currently employs 13 people and has now confirmed today plans to invest another €500,000 to introduce a range of new courses in health and safety aimed at the oil

The new Donegal County Manager Seamus Neely says he will continue to implement the “Whole System of Work” model of management which was promoted by his predecessor Michael Mc Loone. The commitment to the system led auditors to question how consultants were recruited and paid. The system is a new one developed by a team