The results of the latest water samples from three north Sligo beaches are due around lunchtime today, Thursday, and it is hoped that bathing restrictions can be lifted.
A temporary ban on bathing at Rosses Point, Streedagh and Mullaghmore beaches was put in place on Friday after the level of intestinal enterococci in samples taken on June 20 showed non-compliance with nationally set standards.
The bacteria tested are indicators of faecal contamination, so as a precautionary measure the HSE advised a temporary prohibition on bathing.
Sligo County Council have said that the cause is unknown, however it is thought that the quality of water may have been affected by prolonged rainfall over the last week.
Politicians in the North West have reacted with dismay at Britain’s decision to exit the European Union.
SPECIAL TREATMENT: Sligo MEP Marian Harkin says Ireland deserves special treatment to minimise the impact of Britain’s EU exit.
News of the shock vote in favour of leaving the EU came through early on Friday morning last and immediately led to sharp falls on the stock exchange and to the price of Sterling falling to its lowest in over a decade.
The impact Britain’s leaving would have on Ireland was also a topic of heated debate. Sligo independent MEP Marian Harkin said that Ireland is entitled to and should receive special treatment.
She said that the exit vote “poses a significant challenge to the Irish government and to the European Project”.
She called for the government to immediately assess the result and take steps to reassure citizens and Irish business by engaging immediately with the British government on matters of common interest.
“This result is a reflection of the failure of the EU to convince the citizens of the UK that they benefit from EU membership but it also reflects voter disenchantment with the main political parties.
“The vote to leave poses a major challenge to Ireland’s economy as it emerges from the trauma of recent years and the EU owes Ireland special consideration in any conditions governing the exit of the UK,” she said.
In particular there could be no change to the free movement of people within Ireland and no reinstatement of border, controls which would adversely affect economies on both sides of the border, Marian Harkin stressed.
They were sentiments echoed by Sligo TD Marc MacSharry. He said “As a country sharing the only land border with the UK, there’s potential for serious economic harm to come to our country.”
He called on the government to establish an Oireachtas Committee to look at ideas for positive reform to pursue within the European Union.
He also wants all parties to work together “to build a consensus on reform recommendations within the EU, the Eurozone and our relationship with the North.
“In the age of new politics and the Government’s minority position, it’s important that there is a consensus on our national position as to how we would like the European Union to look moving into the future.”
And the Fianna Fail deputy gave the example of the banking inquiry – of which he was a committee member – as an example of what can be achieved through a cross-party approach.
Meanwhile, North West Sinn Fein MEP Matt Carthy has echoed his party’s call to hold a United Ireland referendum, to allow Northern Ireland to remain part of the EU with Ireland.
Mr Carthy has said that Britain’s decision to leave the European Union means that a referendum on a United Ireland is now vital.
REFERENDUM: Sinn Fein MEP Matt Carthy wants a referendum on a united Ireland in the wake of Brexit.
“The British Government has no mandate to drag the north of Ireland out of the EU.
It has no mandate to re-erect border controls between north and south,” said Carthy.
“Irish interests are being actively and gravely damaged by the decisions taken in England. The north of Ireland has voted to remain in the EU.
The British Government cannot now negotiate on behalf of people there to exit the European Union.
“A referendum on a United Ireland is now a democratic imperative and it is incumbent that the Irish Government and all Irish nationalist parties support this demand.”
A 66 years-old Sligo man has been described by a judge as falling in the category of a “difficult and truculent” neighbour.
At the local district court, Chris Kelly of Hazel Grove, Maugheraboy, denied a charge of threatening, abusive or insulting behaviour arising out of an incident with neighbours on May 14, 2015.
Pauric Fallon told the court that when he was passing by Kelly’s garden he (Kelly) asked him (witness) “what he was f—— looking at”.
He said something to the defendant about having some manners and the defendant then followed him up to his house and continued to abuse him and his wife.
He said Chris Kelly blamed the witness and his wife for “causing all the trouble on the street”.
Mr Fallon said this had been going on for a number of years and he had previously complained to the gardai and to the council about Chris Kelly.
“He said that we did not get on with our neighbours and something would happen”, Pauric Fallon said.
In reply to Tom MacSharry, solicitor for Kelly, he denied that he “antagonised” the defendant or that he “smirked at him”.
He said this had started when social welfare cheques for Chris Kelly had come to his (witness’s) house and he returned them to the social welfare office.
For more on this story, see this week’s Sligo Weekender newspaper – in shops now or subscribe to our digital edition. More information on our homepage, www.sligoweekender.ie.
This week a major international player in the craft world has awarded a woodturner from Riverstown the Best Maker in Ireland Award.
CRAFTSMAN: Matt Jones working on his lathe in Riverstown
Matt Jones who works from his studio in Riverstown village, won a prestigious Etsy Regional Award as a direct result of his product designs and handcrafted gifts that he sells via his on-line Etsy Shop.
The Etsy Awards are a series of design awards created by Etsy to spread the word about the amazing talent their community of sellers have to offer.
Matt was one of thousands who entered the competition and sixty finalists were shortlisted. An expert panel of judges, formed from creative organisations in the UK and Ireland, then selected Matt as the Irish winner.
“It is great recognition”, said Matt “and I just returned from a trip to Coventry in England where I had been invited to demonstrate at a Woodturning Symposium, so it is all very positive.”
Matt has been selling his products direct to customers through his Etsy Shop since 2011. Visitors can access his shop through www.etsy.com/ie/shop/mattjonesturning.
“It is a very simple and easy to use shopping system”, says Matt, “and it’s particularly great to see the lovely reviews that customers send to the shop following receipt of their purchases. I have sold to customers all over the world, and in particular it attracts a lot of custom from the USA.”
Matt has won the opportunity to exhibit his work at TENT London during London Design Week.
“TENT London at The London Design Festival is a brilliant show to to be part of”, said Imelda, Matt’s wife who manages his business development, “so it is great that Matt will be representing Ireland there.
“Additionally thanks to funding assistance from the Senior Enterprise Development Officer, Liam Kiely, at Local Enterprise Office Sligo via the On-Line Trading Vouchers grant Matt will have his new website up and running any day now, which will further enhance online sales.”
On Friday July 8, Declan O’Rourke returns to the Hawk’s Well Theatre in what will be one of the musical highlights of the summer.
TROUBADOR Songwriter extraordinaire Declan O’Rourke performs in Sligo this month.
O’Rourke has achieved critical acclaim for his songwriting, singing and performance. Jon Pareles of The New York Times said there was virtuosity in his guitar playing, with “intricately contrapuntal picking and meticulous dynamics”.
A consummate and versatile performer, his songs and solo performances mesmerise. Declan plays to sold-out crowds in Ireland and, more recently, further afield. A consummate and versatile performer, his songs mesmerize regardless of whether performed solo, with a band, string quartet, full orchestra, or as a trio.
Declan’s debut album in 2004, ‘Since Kyabram’, debuted at no. 5 on the Irish Charts and scored double-platinum sales, earning him three Meteor Awards nominations including Best Male, Best Album, and Best Folk/Traditional Album, as well as landing him a recording contract with V2.
His debut album launch took place over three sold-out nights in Whelan’s, one of Dublin’s most popular music venues, broadcast live nationally on Today FM.
The debut single ‘Galileo (Someone Like You)’ has been recorded and performed by many artists, including singer Josh Groban who cut it for his album ‘Illuminations’.
O’Rourke’s second album ‘Big Bad Beautiful World’, released in 2007, also went Platinum in Ireland, debuting at no. 4. Support slots followed in the UK and Germany to the likes of Paulo Nutini, Teddy Thompson, The Cardigans, Divine Comedy and Badly Drawn Boy.
In 2010 he released his third studio album ‘Mag Pai Zai’ under his own label, Rimecoat Records. It topped the success of his first two albums, holding its own in Ireland’s Top 10 Album Charts for four consecutive weeks, and scoring ‘Album of the Week’ on BBC Radio Scotland and RTE Radio 1.
In late 2013, O’Rourke released ‘Mag Pai Zai’ in the United States, his first recording available Stateside. Distributed by the Orchard, the US version garnered critical acclaim from such national media outlets as the The Wall Street Journal, Spin, American Songwriter, Travel & Leisure, NPR’s World Café and USA Today.
Recently, Declan opened for and shared the stage with John Prine on some of his UK, Irish, and US dates, as well as performing on stage and TV with The Dubliners as part of their farewell tour after fifty years in the business. Declan has also recorded songs with English folk sensation Kate Rusby.
O’Rourke’s versatility live has resulted in successful appearances in concert halls, clubs and on television. He has played for three Irish Presidents, and the King and Queen of Sweden.
He appeared on two seasons of the popular music show Other Voices, as well as season five of BBC’s Transatlantic Session alongside Alison Krauss and Amos Lee.
Modfather Paul Weller was full of praise for Declan, describing ‘Galileo’ as “possibly the greatest song written in the last 30 years”.
And songwriting contemporary and oscar-winner Glen Hansard said of him: “Declan O’Rourke is one of the rare breed, he arrived fully formed, his songs, and delivery belie his age, and ours. He’s a timeless troubadour with a voice that breaks through all your defenses and gets to the heart of the matter. One of the true greats of our island.”
Tickets for Declan O’Rourke in concert are €20 (€18 for friends of the Hawk’s Well) with a special price of €10 for Under 18s. Book the tickets online at www.hawkswell.com or through the theatre box office on 071-9161518.
NEW TERM: Cllr Rosaleen O’Grady hands the chains of office over to Cllr Hubert Keaney.
Cllr Hubert Keaney has been elected the new Cathoairleach of the Sligo County Council, Cllr Marie Casserly is the new mayor of Sligo Municipal District and Cllr Dara Mulvey was elected for Ballymote-Tubbercurry Municipal District.
We have coverage from all three electees who gave impassioned speeches focusing on spending locally, supporting volunteer groups and earning more recognition for rural Sligo.
See all this and much more in this week’s Sligo Weekender newspaper. In shops now.
A great line-up of music at this year’s Cairde Sligo Arts Festival includes a special addition to the programme – Songs by the Sea – a new series of music at seaside locations in Sligo presented in collaboration with Bluestack Records.
A young Sligo woman has accused her father of taking her “innocence, childhood dignity and self-worth” by abusing her almost every day for 10 years.
She said that every day of her childhood and teenage years was filled with horrific abuse and some of those memories were still alive in her mind.
In a victim impact statement at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin this week, she said “as a young girl growing up I was abused nearly every day by my father”.
“He took my innocence, childhood dignity and self-worth by abusing me each day; I never felt I was my own person.”
Recalling an incident of attempted rape when she was “cornered” in a cattle shed, she said: “I remember thinking he treated the animals better than me. I told him I felt like a chained up animal.”
The woman said her father would be angry and forceful if she tried to stop him which she said would frighten her.
The court was told that her 50-year-old father has since been diagnosed a paedophile by a psychiatrist and that he began abusing his daughter when she was five years old and after he developed an addiction to pornography.
He pleaded guilty to two attempted rapes and 10 sexual assaults on dates between 2003 to 2012 at the family farm and other areas nearby. He has no previous convictions.
The now 20-year-old woman first disclosed the abuse to her school chaplain when she was 17 years old. She said she always felt different from others and was bullied in school.
She said that a father was supposed to care for and protect his children, but he “treated me like an object that he could use and control”. As a child she felt she was unable to turn to anyone, “even after I realised what was going on”.
An inquiry has found that the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission(GSOC) was “mistaken” in designating a case involving a Sligo garda sergeant as a criminal investigation.
A father and son have climbed Britain’s three highest mountains in three days.
SOARING BIRDS: Jeremy and Paddy Bird atop Scaffell Pike in Cumbria, England last week.
Jeremy Bird, the Head of Science at IT Sligo and his Paddy, a 17-year-old Grammar School student completed the marathon climb last week in memory of Jeremy’s late brother, also named Paddy, who died while attempting the same feat in 1966.
Jeremy and Paddy scaled Mount Snowden in Wales, Scafell Pike in England and Ben Nevis in Scotland over the course of three days in an effort that required a staggering 11,000ft of climbing.
“Last January I was chatting to my family and I said that we should set out to finish the climb that he started as a RAG Week stunt,” Jeremy said.
“It was carried out by students from Birmingham University in 1966 to raise money for charity. Two of them set off to break the three peaks record and one of them was my brother and his friend, Kevin Prendergast.
“I was only ten when we got news that two bodies had been found on Scaffel Pike, one of which was my brother, and it was hard to understand how it could happen in the middle of summer, but those mountains are bad news when the weather is bad.”
In order to get in to shape, as well overcoming an ongoing knee problem, Jeremy enlisted the help of his close friend, Catherine Kearns, who encouraged him to take on the challenge and prepare by scaling Knocknarea on a weekly basis.
After months of training, Jeremy and Paddy were ready to take on what would prove to be a physically and emotionally training challenge.
“We set off at 4am last Monday (June 13), we got on the mountain at noon and climbed Snowden up and down. We then drove to the lark district, climbed Scafell Pike in beautiful weather and climbed to the spot where my brother died and built a memorial.
“We then drove to Edniburgh, stayed overnight and climbed Ben Nevis and that was a different story because it such a massive mountain and there was snow on the top. It was also a miserable day for weather and because it was the last day we were tired and it was a tough climb being 4,000 feet above sea level.
“It was really emotional, we finished what he wanted to do and that is the best commemoration of Paddy we could do.”
SLIGO will be the European Volunteering Captial for 2017.
VOLUNTEER CAPITAL: Ciara Herity of Sligo Volunteer Centre who gave a presentation at the council meeting.
As part of Monday’s meeting of Sligo County Council, Ciara Herity of Sligo Volunteer Centre gave a presentation to councillors which outlined the significance of the honour for Sligo.
To put the achievement into perspective, she pointed to the other cities which have previously been the volunteering capital, such as Lisbon, Barcelona and London.
Council CEO Ciaran Hayes said: “This is probably the first time that a town with the population the size of Sligo has been given this type of honour.”
Meanwhile, Ciaran Herity remarked that the award of being Volunteering Capital is recognition of the ongoing volunteering work in this county.
“We pride ourselves in Sligo on our volunteering and time and time again we have shown that we can host national and international events with the help of volunteering,” she said.
She pointed out the work and diversity of volunteering such as the RNLI, Order of Malta, Samaritans, the Tidy Towns and different sports groups.
She paid tribute to these volunteers who she said “we could not operate without.”
In Sligo alone, Ms Herity worked it out that there is 364,000 hours of volunteering done each year which, calculated at the minimum wage, would cost €3,330,600 if those volunteers were paid.
She described the honour for Sligo as being a “very positive selling point” and that it would have “economic value” for the county.
There were some concerns raised by councillors in regard to the lack of funding. There are no routes of funding being given to the county as European Capital of Volunteering.
Sinn Féin Cllr Sean MacManus believes it would be difficult to match what has gone before without funding. “It is a fantastic achievement for such a small county on the periphery of Europe. It is an acknowledgement of the amount of work done by volunteers in Sligo. It will be difficult to match (the other capitals) and what they have done with no funding,” Cllr MacManus said.
Cllr Tom MacSharry also voiced concern over the lack of funding but offered his and the council’s help.
“Sligo his never found wanting. If there is anything we (Sligo County Council) can do, the council won’t be found wanting either,” he said.
