Author name: oisinkelly

At Derry Magistrates Court today, District Judge Barney Mc Elholm granted anonymity to a man charged with a series of drug offences, including possessing ecstasy that was linked to the English batch which left 6 people in hospital. The judge granted the order after being told that while there was no specific threat against the

Police in Derry have confirmed that new ‘super-strength’ ecstasy tablets have been seized in the north west. A quantity of 1,200 tablets were recovered by police in one of two seizures in Derry. Police also seized another quantity of the tablets in Portstewart in recent days and three people have been arrested. The new yellow

A public meeting is to be held in the Finn Valley tonight over plans to build a massive windfarm in the area. Planree Ltd have applied to An Board Pleanala to develop Irelands biggest onshore windfarm at Carrickduff Hill and Lismullyduff. The proposed windfarm could see up to 49 wind turbines built over 20 townlands.

A Donegal Deputy has raised concerns surrounding the uncertainty of the future of the Out-of-Hours GP Service ‘NOWDoc’ in the county. It has been confirmed that ‘Caredoc’, who together with the HSE provide the NOWDoc Service, has indicated that it plans to withdraw from the service’s current arrangement. Caredoc had requested additional funding from the

One of Ireland’s foremost experts on climate change is addressing a meeting in Letterkenny’s Regional Cultural Centre tomorrow evening. Professor John Sweeney is founder of the Irish Climate Analysis Research Unit in NUI Maynooth, and has collaborated in a number of international initiatives, one of which won a Nobel Prize in 2007. He’ll be speaking

The head of the H-S-E says the decision to pay for expensive drugs for patients with a rare blood disorder will have a knock on effect on the rest of the health service. Tony O’Brien says the cost of the Soliris drug – which costs 430 thousand euro a year for every patient – will

The Council has been called on to examine what legal measures can be put in place to limit speed in housing estates and other built up areas across Donegal. Raising the issue Councillor Ciaran Brogan said the government has announced a review of speeding limits in council run estates but it doesn’t go far enough.

The HSE has been accused of enforcing smoking room laws for pubs and clubs in Donegal unfairly. The accusation has been made by Councillor Paul Canning. He has claimed that a number of businesses in the county have constructed smoking areas in line with legislation only to be informed by the HSE that a different

The priest who said mass at the wedding in Co Fermanagh where two people were shot – one fatally – says there was a sense of tension ‘waiting to explode’ ahead of the ceremony. It happened outside St Mary’s Catholic Church in Newtownbutler near the border. The victim was flown to hospital in police helicopter

A Derry councillor is claiming that a window replacement scheme in Carnhill has been postponed in order to facilitate a similar scheme in Ballymena. Cllr Tony Hassan says the Housing Executive embarked on a long awaited scheme to replace windows in the Carnhill area last month, but work stopped after around three or four homes

The overcrowding crisis continues at Letterkenny General Hospital, with one of the highest ever numbers of people awaiting admission registered by the INMO this morning. There were a total of 32 people awaiting admission, 18 of them on trollies in the emergency department and 14 on wards. Cllr Gerry Mc Monagle is Chairs of the

Gardaí in Buncrana have renewed their appeal for information in relation to the fatal shooting of Andrew Allen in Buncrana, Co Donegal on the 9th February 2012 The 9th of February 2015 marked the third anniversary of the murder of Andrew. Republican Action Against Drugs said it carried out the murder but his family have

The council is being asked to support the expansion and roll-out of the Pro Social Drivers programme which has been hailed as a success. The programme is used by the courts and offers those who face a driving conviction to take the course as part of a sentence. Since it’s inception 90 people have passed

A Councillor says commercial rates should be set against a company’s profits and not on the size of the premises they operate from. Councillor Seamus O’Domhnaill says Government plans to reevaluate commercial premises for the purpose of setting rates are not moving quickly enough and do not fully address the issue. He has welcomed a

Plans to establish a Text Alert system in Convoy are at an advanced stage, with the committee predicting that the initiative will be ready for launch in a matter of weeks. A community alert scheme has been in place, but a local committee got together to progress to a text a;ert scheme on the advice

The driver of a car involved in a single vehicle crash outside Castlefinn this morning is critically ill in hospital. The N15 remains closed approx 1 km outside Castlefinn on the Lifford side, with diversions in place, and will remain closed until at least 11 o’clock.

Donegal County Council has confirmed that the former Bundoran and Ballyshannon Town Council offices will close to the public from next Monday. The council says an outreach service will be provided through the existing libraries in both towns. The opening hours at Ballyshannon Library wuill be increased from one half day per week to three

A 13-year-old boy has been critically injured and an older pupil has been arrested following an assault at a County Fermanagh secondary school. The attack took place at St Michael’s College, Enniskillen, on Monday. The boy is in a critical condition at Belfast’s Royal Victoria Hospital. The PSNI have confirmed a 17-year-old boy was detained

Hundreds of homes are currently without a water supply in Lifford, because of a burst water main. Irish Water says crews are working to restore supplies and they hope to restore supply to the affected areas as soon as possible. There is a tanker in place at Daly’s Shop. Dozens of areas have been affected:

Strabane District Council have proposed that the new pedestrian bridge in the town be named after former Sinn Fein Cllr Ivan Barr. The new bridge, which will link the Ballycolman and the Head of the Town areas, is expected to be completed by the Summer. Sinn Fein made last nights proposal, which had to be voted

Police in the North have arrested a 44 year old man in connection with the disappearance of a woman in Co Tyrone two years ago. 34 year old Charlotte Murray – who is originally from Omagh but had been living in Moy – was reported missing in May 2013 but had not been in contact

The case against a republican accused of killing 29 people in the Omagh bomb is likely to proceed, the high court in Northern Ireland heard today. Doubts had been raised over whether the murder charges against Seamus Daly would be maintained. But a judge was told the test for continuing with the prosecution is now

One hundred and eighty two charges of illegal fishing against 44 men and one woman were called at Dungloe District Court today. Judge Paul Kelly was told nine of the charges against three men were new. He adjourned them for mention to March 10th. The judge was also told that many of the other one

  The Suicide Crisis Assessment Nurse service is being implemented in Donegal on a pilot basis. The service allows GPs refer patients they believe to be at risk of suicide or self harm to a specially trained nurse, who will offer an assessment to the patient within 48 hours. The service is being implemented in

The Road Safety Authority is in Donegal this week to highlight the importance of fitting car seats properly. The RSA says as many as three out of four child car seats may be badly fitted, increasing the risk of death or serious injury to children in the event of a road traffic accident. The ‘Check

A Donegal County Council engineer is to assess a house near Gortahork which was struck by a van at the weekend in the second such incident in less than three years. Joanne and Milo Butler were unloading shopping at the house at Cashel na gCor on Saturday evening when a van came off the road

A 46-year-old man has been arrested in the Creggan area of Derry by detectives from Serious Crime Branch investigating dissident terrorist activity in the city. The PSNI say the suspect was arrested in an operation this morning and has been taken to the Serious Crime Suite at Antrim police station for questioning. A house in

  There are calls for the return of the Garda dedicated drugs units with claims the use of illegal substances is rampant across Donegal. The units were either removed or down graded in Donegal over the last number of years. Councillor Rena Donaghey wants their return, she says they were very effective: