Author name: oisinkelly

  Letterkenny University Hospital is the most overcrowded in Ireland today with 40 people awaiting admission there this morning. Eleven people were waiting on trolleys in its Emergency Department while a further 29 were waiting on wards. The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation is calling on the HSE to publish and implement a Plan B […]

  A man armed with an axe robbed a store in Tyrone yesterday evening. Detectives are appealing for information following the report of an armed robbery which happened in Dungannon shortly before 8pm. At around 7.50pm, it was reported that a man entered business premises in the Scotch Street area, smashed the security glass at

  Vacant pubs across the country are set to be turned into homes under government proposals. Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien wants to extend exemptions for the conversion of commercial sites out to 2025. The Irish Examiner reports it’ll mean people won’t need planning permission to turn a commercial unit into a residential one.

  The Stormont executive will meet today to consider if more Covid restrictions are needed. Ministers will review the latest data and look at whether further measures should be introduced for the hospitality sector. Table service only in bars and restaurants and a limit on household gatherings came into effect on Monday. Over 20 thousand

  Jobseeker payments could be linked to someone’s earnings before they lose their job under government plans. The new system would be based on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment – where claimants get supports based on their previous salary. The Irish Independent reports jobseekers may also have to start physically attending their local post office again

  A number of motorists have been caught speeding in the Letterkenny area in recent days. Three drivers were clocked travelling at 133km, 126km and 125km per hour on Tuesday. On the same day, another motorist tested positive for cannabis. Fixed Charge Penalty Notices were issued by the Letterkenny Roads Policing Unit. In a statement,

  Nearly 2 thousand people were restrained or secluded in mental health services last year. There were over 5,800 episodes of restrictive practices reported to the Mental Health Commission in 2020. It’s down around 13 per cent on the previous year. Physical restraint was used in 73 per cent of centres last year – a

Visiting at Letterkenny University Hospital is being restricted. Due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the community, Saolta says access to visitors is now being limited to one person, per patient for 15 minutes per day. The hospital is also currently dealing with a Covid-19 outbreak. Visits to Letterkenny University Hospital must be

Police in Derry are appealing for information after a 48 year old man was seriously injured in an assault. It happened in the early hours of Sunday December 19th and is thought to have taken place somewhere between the Northland Road Junction and Northland Avenue in the city. Police believe the attack took place between

Gardai in Donegal have seized a vehicle after it emerged it had not been taxed in almost 7 years. A total of two vehicles were seized by Gardai in Ballyshannon. Tax on the first vehicle expired 2,493 days ago while the second vehicle had not been taxed in 421 days. Fixed Charge Penalty Notices were

Gardaí attended the scene of a crash at the Manorcunningham roundabout earlier today. The two car collision occurred shortly before noon. No injuries were reported at the scene. The road remains open.

Update: Power has been restored to most areas of Donegal. At a peak earlier this afternoon, over 3000 properties were affected by power outages. A number of homes and businesses in Convoy however, are still without power. ESB crews are currently working to repair the fault with power estimated to be restored this afternoon. ********************************************************

An investigation has been launched by Police in Strabane after a woman was knocked unconscious during an assault outside a licenced premises on the Castlefin Road in the early hours of Monday morning. It’s believed the victim was waiting with friends for a lift home at around 1:15am when a group of men aged between

High speed broadband infrastructure is being roll out to six islands off the coast of Donegal and Mayo. National Broadband Ireland says the quality and speed available on the islands will be the same as homes connected to the NBP on the mainland. Construction is currently underway on four of the islands with the service

Letterkenny University Hospital is the second most overcrowded hospital in the country today. According to the latest Trolley Watch report from the INMO, 34 people are waiting on a bed at the hospital today. 15 people are on a trolley in the Emergency Department of Letterkenny University Hospital while a further 19 are waiting on

The Taoiseach is dismissing claims that members of his Party are still unhappy with his leadership. He was responding to speculation that a number of back-bench Fianna Fail TDs wanted change earlier this year. Michael Martin says the Covid crisis resulted in more online instead of personal meetings. He says issues over meetings have now

A driver is due to appear in court in the New Year after being caught drug driving in the Fahan area. Gardaí from Buncrana Garda Station and members of the Roads Policing Unit yesterday detected a vehicle being driven in a dangerous manner in the Fahan area. The driver was stopped and subsequently arrested after

83.5% of people in Donegal are fully vaccinated against Covid-19. That’s the lowest figure in the country but does not account for those who may have received their vaccine in Northern Ireland. Latest figures from the HSPC show that 86.8% of over 18’s in the county are fully vaccinated and 83.5% of over 12’s.

Those aged 30 to 39 are eligible to register for a Covid vaccine booster from today. They’ll be available at walk in clinics, participating pharmacies or GPs, or by booking a time slot for a centre online. Meanwhile, those aged 16 to 29 who received the one shot Janssen vaccine are also eligible for a

There’s been a sharp increase in house prices in Donegal over the past year. According to the latest Daft.ie House Price Report the average house price in the county is now €177,000. The final Daft.ie House Price Report of the year shows another jump in Donegal’s house prices – up 3.7 percent in just the

The latest wave of Covid 19 cases will peak in the next week or so, according to the Tanaiste. Leo Varadkar says while January would be a difficult month, the number of virus patients in hospital would be lower than last winter. The Tanaiste says that Covid 19 infections were likely to be very high

An investigation has been launched after a man was attacked and robbed in Letterkenny. At around 9:30pm on Thursday night last, a man is believed to have left the bus station in the town and was walking in the direction of the carpark nearby when he was assaulted by two women and a man at

A woman in her 80s was airlifted to hospital following a crash in Ballyshannon yesterday. The collision involving two vehicles occurred at around 2:25pm yesterday afternoon. The woman in her 80s was the driver of one of the vehicles, she was transferred to Galway University Hospital for treatment to her injuries. Gardai say no other

The Department of Health has confirmed 9,006 new cases of Covid-19 today in the Republic of Ireland It’s also confirmed that the number of people being treated in Irish hospitals for Covid-19 has increased by 22% since Sunday. Latest figures from the HSE show that there are 521 patients with the virus in hospital –

Gardaí have renewed their calls for information relating to a burglary in the Burnfoot area last week. They say that burglars entered a residence in the Tooban area of Burnfoot between 4:30am and 4:55am on Thursday the 23rd of December. A set of car keys were stolen, and when the burglars were disturbed by one

The Department of Health has reported an additional 6,735 new cases of Covid-19 in the Republic of Ireland today. The latest figures show that 461 people are being treated for the virus in hospitals, with 91 of those in intensive care units.

  The HSE have said the NowDoc out-of-hours GP service has been receiving an increased volume of calls over the Christmas period, and are expecting more pressure on the service in the upcoming period. They say to expect longer than usual wait times, and that urgent care calls will be prioritised first. The public has

Three men in their 20s have died after a car crash on the Omagh Road in County Tyrone. It’s believed the crash occurred in the Garvaghy area, on the A5 road. The PSNI say a car and a lorry were reportedly involved in the incident, which happened shortly before 2am. A fourth man has been