Author name: oisinkelly

  A Derry and Strabane councillor says the social housing crisis in Derry City means it’s crucial that the potential of the H2 site close to the Donegal border is realised. Tony Hassan, the Sinn Fein Housing Spokesman says over 13 years ago, the site was earmarked for one of the most ambitious urban developments […]

A Donegal Councillor has questioned why Pat the Cope Gallagher has omitted Fianna Fail branding from at least some of his election leaflets. Cllr Michael Colm Mac Giolla Easbuig, who is backing Independent Thomas Pringle in the General Election, has suggested Pat The Cope may be distancing himself from Fianna Fail given their ‘poor’ record

It’s expected that a meeting of the IFA’s executive council later today, will lead to full elections for the organisation’s board in the coming months. A protest by IFA members is expected ahead of the meeting. Yesterday, senior members of the association’s board indicated that they would step down and allow for full elections to

Fianna Fáil is calling for a major revamp of the social welfare applications process to reduce the excessive waiting times, with claims that hundreds of people in Donegal are being affected. The party says the latest figures released to them reveal that the average processing time for social welfare appeals in 2015 was almost six

The Central Statistics Office is looking to recruit 4,600 people to distribute and collect forms for this year’s census, 180 of them in Donegal. The application process is open at census.ie from 9 o’clock this morning until this Friday the 8th of January, but there is a cap on the number of applications which will

There have been claims the needs of Lifford Community Hospital are being continually ignored despite numerous HIQA reports pointing out that upgrades are needed in various areas. Cllr Gary Doherty, a Sinn Fein candidate in the forthcoming General Election says while staff are doing the best they can, the failure to carry out improvements may

  Police at Strand Road are appealing for information about an assault on a man in the Creggan area. The incident happened Tuesday last but details are only emerging now. At around 1am on December 29, the victim was walking at Eastway in Derry when he was set upon by four men. The man sustained

There is a spike in the numbers admitted to Letterkenny University Hospital and without a bed. According to figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation 14 patients are without a bed. 6 of those are on trolleys while 8 are ‘in wards’. At Sligo Regional Hospital 19 patients are without a bed – nationally

Donegal County Council and Letterkenny Tidy Towns will take on board the findings of the latest IBAL report, which says the town is “moderately littered”, and ranks it 36th out of 40 towns surveyed. It comes just a few months after Letterkenny was named overall winner at the 2015 National Tidy Towns Awards. Letterkenny Municipal

Independent General Election Candidate Niamh Kennedy has put an opposition to windfarms as a key part of her campaign. The Donegal County Councillor says that while she herself does not have a strong opposition to windturbines, she recognises others do and wants to give them a voice. The Killybegs based Councillor says however that she

A Derry councillor is calling for more resources for the Fire Service after a weekend fire at a wood chip storage facility in Culmore. The store is owned by John Gilliland, who has business interests in wood energy and recycling. Cllr Angela Dobbins has commended the Fire & Rescue Service for their swift and effective

The final litter survey of 2015 by Irish Business Against Litter has designated Letterkenny as “moderately littered”, placing the town in 36th spot among 40 areas surveyed. The town, which won the overall prize in the National Tidy Towns Awards in September, had been ranked 11th in IBAL’s 2014 rankings. The report for Letterkenny, which

The Divisional Commander of the Coastguard in Donegal says the level of cooperation and understanding between the emergency services has been a key element of their success over the past 12 months. The Irish Coastguard’s end of year report showed increased activity across the board, and particularly at Malin Head, which had its busiest year

The latest house price figures from daft.ie show that prices increased in 2015 by 8 and a half per-cent across the country between October and December. In Donegal, prices between October and December 2015 were 9% higher than a year previously, compared to a rise of 1% seen a year ago. The average house price

Dozens of people turned out today for another foot search along the Donegal Derry border as efforts continue to find missing Derry man John Concannon. Mr Concannon, who has dementia and hearing difficulties, disappeared after apparently getting on the wrong bus at the Foyle Street Bus Station in Derry on November 10th. The last sighting

The fire service in Derry is continuing to monitor the scene of a fire at Gillilands Wood Chip storage facility on the Culmore Road. The blaze broke out early yesterday morning, and was brought under control by the fire service. However, the nature of the materials stored in the shed meant that it continued to

Forty five firefighters have been dealing with a blaze in a large shed in Derry since around 5 o’clock this morning. An estimated 600 tonnes of wood chips are stored in the building, which is situated on farmland off the Culmore Road. The fire service says the fire is still burning, but is under control,

The search for 71 year old John Concannon resumes tomorrow, with a foot search of an area close to the spot where John was seen on CCTV getting off a bus in November. John’s family are appeal for volunteers to participate, gathering in Bridgend at midday. The latest coordinated search will begin tomorrow, with people

  The Coastguard says there was a 58% drop in the number of hoax calls received during 2015, but they want to see that fall further. The figure was contained in its end of year report, which showed increased activity across the board, and particularly at Malin Head, which had its busiest year ever. The

Fewer people died on Ireland’s roads in 2015 than almost any other year since records began. There were 165 fatalities last year – including an average of one a day over Christmas. The safest year was 2012, but there’s been an upward trend since then – in 2014 193 people died. In Donegal and the Northern

Donegal’s first baby of 2016 was born at Letterkenny University Hospital at 12 minutes to one this morning. Baby Chloe was born to Niamh Flaherty, a native of Sligo now based in Letterkenny. It was a busy night for the staff at the maternity ward at the hospital, with two more babies born before 7 o’clock