Author name: oisinkelly

Gardaí in Milford are seeking the public’s assistance in relation to a two vehicle road traffic collision which occurred at Dunlewey, Co. Donegal on 13th September 2009 at approximately 3.10pm. The collision involved two vehicles a red Toyota Carina and a black Toyota Celica. A 66 year old man died in Letterkenny General Hospital on […]

It’s emerged that an Inishowen couple endured a nightmare minibus journey to Dublin with the body of their dead infant last month, because there are no qualified paediatric pathologists in Donegal. The two week baby died in his sleep on the 25th of November, but because neither of the two pathologists in Donegal are qualified

A group set up in the North West to help homeowners at risk of losing their home says it shouldn’t be left up to the mortgage lender alone to decide on the future of a family’s house. Thousands of people across the country are now in mortgage arrears with many facing the prospect of home

An Oireachtas Committee has been told that proposals to amalgamate Community Development Programmes and the Local Development Social Inclusion Programme into a single partnership board would have a massive impact on community initiatives. Senator Pearse Doherty told the combined Arts, Sports, Tourism, Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs committee that there are nine CDPs in Donegal,

The impact of the recession on people with disability is being discussed at a workshop in the Ramada Encore hotel in Letterkenny this afternoon. Today is International Day of People with a Disability, and the campaign group People with Disabilities in Ireland is hosting the event, which all disabled people and their families are being

The expenses of Government Ministers are back in the spotlight this morning, with the focus on Tanaiste and Enterprise Minister Mary Coughlan. It’s emerged that the Tanáiste clocked up a 9-thousand euro bill to keep a chauffeur on standby at the World Trade Organisation talks in Switzerland. According to this morning’s Irish Independent, Minister Coughlan’s

Donegal has the state’s third highest level of car imports from the North and Great Britain at almost 4,400, with only Dublin and Cork importing more. Figures released by motorcheck.ie show that new car sales in Donegal have fallen by 57% since the beginning of the year, while imports have fallen by only 7%. This

Sentencing has been deferred in the case of a Donegal Town based Libyan teenager who threatened to follow an employee of the Refugee Reception and Integration Office home and burn down her house after his request for accommodation was refused. Hisham Ali Saad became frustrated and overwhelmed at the asylum system following his arrival in

A family group of five from Co Donegal has collected a EuroMillions PLUS win of €500,000 from last Friday’s draw. The group wishes to keep their win private, and are not revealing where they are from. However, the National Lottery is confirming the winning €12 Quick Pick ticket was bought at the Esso Service Station,

A woman who runs The Happy Matchmaker dating agency refused to give a dissatisfied client files for court proceedings, it was claimed today. Happy Matchmaker boss Mary Mitchell of Ballintra, Co. Donegal, has been accused of failing to check out men introduced to Annemarie McBrearty.. Ms McBrearty is suing Ms Mitchell for €6,348.99 for negligence,

It’s been claimed that there could be death or serious injury if something isn’t done to address the issue of derelict buildings in Ramelton. Local Councillor Ian McGarvey has raised the issue and claims that it is only a matter of time before falling debris or slates injure someone. The issue was raised at this

Gardai in Letterkenny have recovered almost two hundred thousand euro of heavy plant machinery including tractors, diggers and tele-porters. The goods were removed to a yard in the Dry Arch area of Letterkenny however, overnight a man entered the yard and used petrol in an attempt to set the equipment on fire. Gardai are appealing

Mix of cloud and sunny spells today, with dry weather for much or all of the day but perhaps the odd heavy shower also. Highest temperatures 8 or 9 C. Becoming cold and windy tonight, with clear spells and occasional heavy showers – these could turn wintry on the mountains. Lowest temperatures 1 to 5

Donegal County Councillors have expressed there growing frustration at the local authorities lack of action in clamping down on contractors who do not fully complete private housing estates. At this weeks council meeting representatives took it in turn to highlight estates in their areas that were still incomplete despite numerous representations Raising the issue Councillor

A Derry MLA says work is expected to begin on a new cancer care centre at Altnagelvin by 2012. While formal announcements have yet to be made, Martina Anderson says a time line for the project was agreed by the North South Ministerial Council last week. Ms Anderson says the provision of cross border cancer

North West MEP Pat the Cope Gallagher says the replacement of Joe Borg as EU Fisheries Commissioner is a sad day for Ireland. Mr Gallagher led a Federation of Irish Fishermen deputation to meet with the commissioner ahead of this month’s crucial quota discussions in Brussels. He says they had a frank discussion, and Mr

Union leaders have announced that the public sector strike action planned for this Thursday has been deferred. It comes as marathon talks on cutbacks in the sector continue at government buildings. No final deal on cuts is expected today – and talks are due to continue at least into tomorrow.

The Gateway to Protestant Participation project was prompted by the belief that while catholic and nationalist groups have been quick to avail of opportunities such as the International Fund for Ireland and the EU Peace programme, traditionally, protestant groups have not done so. Willie Lamrock, from the YMCA in Derry, the lead partner in the

Gardai have renewed their appeal for information about what happened a man who was found seriously injured on the outskirts of Letterkenny six weeks ago. The man was found outside his home at Calhame, Mountaintop in the early hours of Wednesday October 21st with serious head injuries. Sergeant Philip Gillespie is leading the investigation, he

The Revenue Commissioners recouped nearly 18 million euro from tax defaulters in the three months to the end of September. A total of 76 settlements have been published – four of them in Donegal. The biggest settlement in Donegal was made by car dealer and guest house owner Anthony Mulhern of Ardlenagh, Donegal Town, who

The National Cancer Registry has published its first ‘atlas of cancer’ in Ireland  this morning which shows that Donegal has some of the highest rates of certain cancers in the country. The atlas provides detailed geographical information on the distribution of common cancers over a ten year period. Donegal has some of the highests rates

A Donegal County Council report has raised a number of question over the grounds used  An Bord Pleanala to refuse planning permission for the Stranorlar / Ballybofey bypass. The review presented to Councillors yesterday took issue with almost all of the reasons the planning board gave for refusing the project and included options on how

A Donegal County Councillor has claimed that it is unreasonable to expect people to pay for water when the council can’t account for almost half of what it provides. A report last month showed that 43% of potable council water cannot be accounted for, although a drop on previous figures, the council has one of

Plans have been announced for a major extension to Foyleside Shopping Centre in Derry, with 500 construction jobs and 300 full time jobs envisaged. It is estimated that the total cost of the Foyleside expansion would be in the region of £100 million, and that it would take over 2 years to build. The expansion

There has been widespread condemnation of those repsonsible for placing an explosive device outside a police station in Strabane. Residents of the Courtrai Park area were evacuated after the discovery last night, there were allowed to return home once the device was removed by army bomb disposal experts. Ulster Unionist Strabane District Councillor Derek Hussey

A 41-year-old Derry was today  told that it was ‘almost inevitable’ that he was gong to prison after he admitted eight charges of making indecent images of children at Derry Crown Court. Adrian Mark Goligher of Stevenson Park, Tullyally was charged with making the images which the court heard were in the form of films

Fianna Fail TD Niall Blaney is seeking a meeting with Dr James Mc Daid to discuss the ongoing rift between them which has today seen Dr Mc Daid withdraw his support from the government. In a letter to Chief Whip Pat Carey, Dr Mc Daid blames what he terms the “farcical” outcome of the first

A date for the trial of a 37 year old Derry man accused of murdering a pregnant mother of four has been set for next year. Stephen Cahoon of Harvey Street in Derry has pleaded NOT guilty to the murder of Jean Quigley. His trial is due to start on July 12th next at the

Inishowen Councillors have expressed their dissatisfaction with the news that the council plans to scrap proposals for an Inishowen local area plan in favour of a county wide development plan. When the issue was raised by Councillor Padraig McLoughlainn he was told that because of funding constraints the money was not available. The county manager

Donegal County Council will adjourn its monthly meeting this afternoon for a discussion on the Stranorlar / Ballybofey by-pass. Earlier this month An Bord Pleanala refused planning permission for the development on a number of grounds. In refusing permission the board called for the scheme to be redesigned and a new EIS to be carried

Deputy Dr James Mc Daid has withdrawn his support for the Government today. It follows an acrimonious meeting of Fianna Fail members in Letterkenny last evening which saw the Deputy and a number of his supporters stage a walk-out. The party had met to appoint officers for the old Letterkenny / Milford electoral area however

A Donegal priests has described the church as now an obstacle to faith. Fr Edward Kilpatrick used his sermon yesterday, like most priests across the county, to respond to the publication of the Murphy Report into clerical child sexual abuse in the Dublin Archdiocese. Fr Kilpatrick said it was a measure of the arrogance of

A Donegal County Council has described his disgust with those responsible for attacks on homes in the Cavinhill area of Lifford. At the weekend missiles were thrown at homes in Cavinhil, many occupied by the elderly, while a car was found burnt out in the area thought to be connected to those responsible for the

Gardai are urging motorists to exercise extreme caution this morning as freezing conditions and black ice have left a number of roads in a dangerous condition. A number of minor accidents have been reported already this morning with roads in the north of the county reported as particularly dangerous. Cars have left the road in

Retail Ireland says every 150 cross-border shopping trips represent the loss of one job. The organisation is warning that 1,700 jobs will be lost during the month of November and possibly December if action isn’t taken in next month’s Budget. It says economies in the border counties of Cavan, Donegal, Louth and Monaghan are being

Donegal County Council has stopped short of offering free parking in a number of town across the county but a draw is being introduced in effort to encourage people to shop local. There have been calls for free parking in Donegal Town, Ballyshannon and the Twin Towns but instead those paying for parking will be

Letterkenny General Hospital will be part of a major new HSE initiative aimed at cracking down on alcohol abuse. From the start of next month people who attend the emergency departments at Letterkenny General will be asked about their alcohol consumption patterns. The aim of the initiative is to intervene at an early stage and

Firefighters spent five hours overnight bringing a major blaze under control at an industrial estate in Derry. The fire, at a building containing bales of shredded paper on the Pennyburn Industrial Estate, broke out shortly after 6 o’clock last evening Eight crews from across the county were called to the fire. Local Councillor Mark Durkan

Greg Hughes presents a look back at the main stories making the headlines on Friday 27th of November

The Bishop of Raphoe has said that he would welcome an audit or any intervention which would help ensure the safety of children. Dr Bishop Boyce was speaking as It emerged that one of the priests identified as a serial abuser in the Murphy Report served for a period in the Diocese of Raphoe. Patrick

It has been confirmed that the Letterkenny man accused of trying to kill a police officer in County Fermanagh was a reserve soldier in the Irish Army. Gerard James McManus, from Fern Hill in Letterkenny appeared in court on Wednesday charged with attempting to murder a trainee officer. His co-accused is 32-year-old Kevin Barry Nolan,

Fine Gael is highlighting figures which show Donegal farm incomes have fallen by 28% this year. Deputy Joe McHugh says the statistics confirm what has been obvious locally for many months ; bad prices and bad weather are hammering Donegal farmers. The release of the figures coincides with the visit to Donegal today of Fine

As the fallout continues in the wake of the Murphy report, it’s emerged there are currently 17 priests facing allegations of abuse in the Derry diocese. The figures are published in todays’s Derry Journal, with Bishop Seamus Hegarty saying all allegations have been reported to the either the PSNI or the gardai. It’s understood that

Donegal County Council is being urged to call as special meeting between councillors and job creation agencies to tackle the worsening jobs crises in the Stranorlar Electoral area. Councillor Cora Harvey wants local representatives from the area to meet with the Donegal Enterprise Board, IDA and Enterprise Ireland to develop a strategy to increase investment

Figures published today show that just under 85% of secondary school students who completed the Leaving Cert in Donegal this year went on to college. Feeder school figures published in today’s papers include figures for 24 schools in Donegal at which almost 1,900 students sat the exam. Two schools in Donegal, Milford Community School and

A County Councillor has claimed that many people on council housing estates are having delays in their problems being resolved because they are being passed from one department to another. Councillor Thomas Pringle is to raise the issue at the council’s next monthly meeting claiming there is confusion as to which section of the council

A 20-year-old Derry man has been sent for trial on a charge of endangering an aircraft with a lazer pen Patrick White of 7 Old School Lane Derry appeared at a preliminary Enquiry today at Derry Magistrate’s Court charged with endangering an aircraft on April 29. It was accepted that there was a case to

People in Donegal seeking the Swine Flu vaccination rare being advised that the jab is only being offered now by appointment at HSE run clinics. The HSE says that while they could accommodating walk-in visits in the past, that is no longer the case. Meanwhile there’s been another death connected to swine flu. The man

The Bishop of Raphoe has said that he would welcome an audit or any intervention which would help ensure the safety of children. Dr Bishop Boyce was speaking as It emerged that one of the priests identified as a serial abuser in the Murphy Report served for a period in the Diocese of Raphoe. Patrick