Author name: oisinkelly

  A Donegal Senator has hit out at the Health Minister over his response on funding provision for Letterkenny University Hospital. The proposed funding injection would reopen 20 beds at the hospitals Short Stay Ward while also cater for additional staff. However, following questions to Minister Simon Harris from Senator Padraig Mac Lochlainn on the […]

There are claims that the long term future of three community hospitals in Donegal is still very much in the balance. It’s after junior health minister Jim Daly failed to give any guarantees regarding their future status to Donegal Deputy and Leas Cheann Comhairle Pat the Cope Gallagher. Meanwhile it’s also emerged that the Minister

  A verdict is due today in the inquests into the deaths of 5 family members in Buncrana. Yesterday the inquest heard the driver of the car was more than three times over the legal limit.   The big news yesterday was the revelation that the driver of the car that slid into the sea

  Derry City and Strabane District Council has been granted planning permission for the Ebrington Square Maritime Museum in Derry. The plans include change of use, alterations and the extension of a number of former military buildings at Ebrington Square to provide a Maritime Museum and Archive Centre, parking and landscaping. Mark Lusby, Project Co-Ordinator

Concerns have been raised over the lack of progress on proposed plans to widen the A2 Buncrana Road. The road is used on a daily basis as a gateway to Donegal with many commuters travelling the route crossing the Donegal/ Derry border at Bridgend. The preferred route for the scheme was announced back in 2009

Main Evening News, Sport and Obituaries Wednesday 22nd November

The Mica issue has been raisd in the Dail again this afternoon, with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar indicating the report of the Expert Panel will be discussed at cabinet before the end of the year. The issue was raised by Donegal Deputy Charlie Mc Conalogue, who stressed the need for progress on a redress scheme. Deputy

Post mortem results for the driver of the car involved in the Buncrana pier tragedy show he may have been three times over the drink driving limit. A pathologist who examined Sean McGrotty’s body says the results of the post mortem indicate there may have been an element of intoxication.   Pathologist Dr. Catriona Dillon

A man has told the Special Criminal Court he just froze and grabbed his daughter when a man opened fire in a Dublin bar in April 2016. He was giving evidence in the trial of Eamon Cumberton who’s accused of murdering Michael Barr at the Sunset House pub, which is near Croke Park.   James

There were 25 people waiting on a bed atLetterkenny University Hospital this morning. 12 were on trolleys in the hospitals Emergency Department with a further 13 on wards. 423 people were awaiting admission at hospitals across the country today with University Hospital Limerick the most overcrowded.

Derry based technology firm MetaCompliance has announced a three year expansion plan, with 69 new jobs being created. The company develops software and creative content for the cyber security sector and is aiming to triple its turnover by capitalising on the demand for cloud based cyber security products. MetaCompliance is one of Northern Ireland’s most

The Letterkenny Cathedral Quarter Committee has expressed disappointment after no members of the Letterkenny Municipal District turned up for a meeting in Dillon’s Hotel last night. All ten members were invited. Two of them, Councillors Michael mc Bride and John O’Donnell sent apologies, and Cathedral Quarter Co-ordinator Donnan Harvey says he understands a number were

Over €50,000 in funding is being made available for a Gaelic football pitch development in West Donegal. Government Chief Whip Minister Joe McHugh has sanctioned €50,050 to help finance a €70,000 spend on fencing and access to the new Na Rossa pitch in Gweebarra. Minister McHugh says he visited the pitch earlier this year to

  An inquest opens into the Buncrana Pier Tragedy this morning – which killed five members of a family from Derry. Sean McGrotty – his two sons, Mark and Evan – his partner’s mother Ruth Daniels and her daughter, Jodie Lee died in March last year. Their car slid from the slipway into Lough Swilly.

  A former Tanaiste has described comments made by Lord Kilclooney about Donegal as ‘nonsense’. John Taylor, now Lord Kilclooney, says Donegal has been forgotten by the Irish Government and has suggested that the County would be better off being part of the UK. Speaking at Bank of Ireland’s Women in Business event in Letterkenny,

Bank of Ireland Donegal hosted a highly successful ‘Women in Business Lunch’ this week in the idyllic surroundings of Castle Grove Country Hotel just outside Letterkenny. Guest speakers included: Deirdre McGlone: President Donegal Women in Business Network. Nikki Bradley: Motivational/Mental Health Speaker. Mary Coughlan: Former Politician Joann Hosey Regional Director Bank Of Ireland Connaught &

  A Donegal County Councillor has reiterated his call on the Government to implement the eight technical recommendations of the Report of the Expert Panel on Concrete Blocks in counties Donegal and Mayo. The report was published almost six months ago and had been delayed a year prior to that. One of its recommendations is

The inquest into the Buncrana pier tragedy will begin this morning. The Coroner for Donegal says they’ll aim to establish exactly what happened on the day five members of one family lost their lives. On March 20th 2016 a car slid off Buncrana pier and into the waters of Lough Swilly. Five members of one

A cross border initiative has been launched to establish a number of cross border “Community Health and Well Being Hubs” in Donegal, Cavan / Monaghan, Derry, Fermanagh, Tyrone, Armagh, and Scotland. A tender has been issued inviting community groups and other organisations to bid for funding to establish eight hubs in total. The EU backed

There are calls for a proper operational plan for rural post offices to help them stay open. Fianna Fáil says the 30 million euro loan announced by the Government yesterday is merely a short term fix and doesn’t properly address how to make post offices viable. It says they should be seen as part of

In an address to Minister Michael Creed in the Dail last evening, Donegal Deputy Charlie McConalogue says the fodder shortage in Donegal is a very severe situation that needs urgent action by Government. The Fianna Fail Agriculture Spokesperson said Minister Michael Creed’s approach and response to the emergencies facing the farming community is poor. He

  Churches and state buildings here and in the UK will be lit up today as part of a campaign to highlight religious intolerance. Derry, Waterford, Sligo and Armagh Cathedrals are taking part in the ‘hashtag Red Wednesday’ initiative as well as Knock Basilica. In the UK, the houses of Parliament and The Palace of

Main Evening News, Sport and Obituaries Tuesday 21st November

The Tanaiste is to make a statement to the Dail this evening on when she became aware of a garda strategy to discredit Maurice McCabe. Frances Fitzgerald says she doesn’t remember an e-mail she got in May 2015 which described a row between the legal teams of the Garda commissioner and Sergeant McCabe. Taoiseach Leo

The High Court has approved a €15m settlement for a four-year-old boy who was catastrophically injured during his birth at the Coombe Hospital in Dublin. The hospital apologised to Eoin McCallig from Dunkineely in Donegal, and his parents for his injuries and for the devastating consequences for the family. RTE is reporting that speaking outside

The HSE says the SAOLTA group has applied for funding to have extra beds opened at Letterkenny University Hospital under a special winter initiative, but would give no commitment on providing money to enable them to open up the closed Short Stay Ward at the hospital. Cllr Gerry Mc Monagle says he is disappointed with

Coillte has today announced that they have withdrawn their application for a road through Lis Na Grath Woods, Muff. A meeting was held last week with the company after concerns were raised locally over the environmental impact the proposed plans would have on wildlife in the area. The company has now agreed on an alternative

A former Ulster Unionist MP is suggesting that Donegal would be better off being part of the UK. John Taylor, now Lord Kilclooney, says Donegal has been forgotten by the Irish Government. Speaking during a discussion on the potential impact of Brexit on border counties, Lord Kilclooney told Ocean FM that Donegal would gain from

There were 33 people awaiting admission at Letterkenny University Hospital this morning, 20 of them on Emergency Department trolleys. That’s an increase of 11 on yesterday’s figure, making Letterkenny the third most overcrowded in the country today. Nationally, the INMO says there were 448 people awaiting in-patient beds at hospitals across the country this morning,

  There’s been a 52% increase in the number of passengers travelling on the Aer Lingus Regional route between Donegal Airport and Dublin. Figures released this morning show just over 33,500 passengers flew between Dublin and Donegal in the past twelve months, compared to just over 22,000 the previous year. August of this year was

People in the Twin Towns area are being encouraged to attend the launch of the new Ballybofey Stranorlar Text Alert scheme. The launch takes place tomorrow evening in the Finn Valley Centre at 8pm with guest speakers on the night including Supt Michael Finan and Crime Prevention Officer Sgt Paul Wallace Crime prevention Officer. Local

A Donegal County Councillor is warning over a possible downturn in trade in the run up to Christmas if commercial rates are increased. Fine Gael Whip Cllr Barry O’Neill was speaking after local representatives failed to reach an agreement on Budget 2018 last night. Cllr O’Neill says with much uncertainty surrounding Brexit, now is not

Donegal County Council has proposed to increase funding support for both the Foyle and Swilly ferry service. An additional €175,000 is being made available as part of budget 2018, bringing the total amount to €225,000. The local authority say that this will remove the uncertainty in relation to the availability of the services. Cllr. Martin

Donegal County Councillors have been unable to reach an agreement on the council’s 2018 budget. After almost 6 hours of adjournments and private deliberations at yesterday’s meeting, it was agreed last night that the meeting be adjourned until December 1st. All Councillors from across the party divide voted against an increase of 5% in commercial

  The number of drinking water supplies in Donegal with high levels of THMs has been reduced to 11, following the removal of Fintown from Donegal’s Remedial Action List. The Environmental Protection Agency removed the supply from the list after a €1.1 million investment programme involving the construction of new water mains and two booster