Students from the Mercy secondary school in Galway City have won a top award for raising awareness of environmental problems caused by flushing wet wipes down the toilet.

The students’ project, entitled ‘Wet Wipe Hype Project’ came about following a beach clean-up they carried out two years ago – they discovered a huge number of wet wipes tangled up in seaweed.

Their ‘Ocean Hero Award’ coincides with the launch of a nationwide ‘Think Before You Flush’ campaign to halt the problem of sanitary products being thrown down the toilet.

Beckey Finn Britton, Coastal Programmes Officer with An Taisce said: “The campaign through education and awareness aims to prevent items like wet wipes clogging our wastewater network and cotton bud sticks washing up on our beaches.

“Every day, people flush thousands of sanitary items such as baby wipes and cotton bud sticks down the toilet instead of simply putting them in the bin. Other items that are frequently flushed down the toilet include cigarette butts and plasters.

“In a study of over 1,000 Irish people, 3 in 10 admitted to flushing such items down the toilet. Of these, 58% admitted to flushing baby wipes down the toilet; 40% facial wipes; 26% cotton bud sticks; 24% tampons and 21% cigarette butts.

“More than half of those who flush these items down the toilet did so simply due to a lack of knowledge,” she said. The students in the Mercy carried out an awareness survey based on the flushing habits of students in the school.

They found that 51% of students regularly flushed wet wipes down the toilet and 55% did not know the results of flushing wet wipes.

These results led to the development of awareness workshops to be given to students by students.

A follow-up survey revealed 87% of students who attended the workshop agreed to stop flushing the wipes.

The students carried out a further study of the beach which was initially cleaned.

They found an average 60 wet wipes washed up per square metre, equivalent to one standard pack of wipes.

This resulted in the commencement of a social and local media campaign highlighting the issue.

The students also visited a local primary school to inform them about the issue and filmed an awareness video clip for Clean Coasts. Sean Corrigan of sponsors Irish Water said: “Irish Water is prioritising investment in improving wastewater treatment in areas around the country that have been without proper wastewater treatment for many years.

“We are fortunate to have such a magnificent coastline in Ireland and a really high quality marine environment and the investment we are making in the coming years will ensure this is protected.”

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A public meeting will be held in Salthill tonight to discuss the “crime wave” sweeping across communities throughout the country.

The meeting – organised by Fianna Fáil’s General Election candidates for Galway West – will offer a “unique insight into problems faced by communities”.

Galway Crime Prevention Officer, Sergeant Pat Flanagan will be in attendance, along with Bernard Kearney from community group Muintir na Tíre.

Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív said the organisers are anxious to hear from members of the public about their experiences.

“We are determined to make the fight against crime a top priority and we are anxious to hear from members of the public about their experiences.  The party is holding a series of meetings across the country to listen to the concerns of people who are worried about crime.

“We want to see more initiatives to strengthen the Gardai while making it tougher for criminal gangs to target communities.

“There needs to a radical rethink about how we tackle crime.  Fianna Fáil has put forward a 7-point plan aimed at clamping down on this crime spree – it will be one of the issues up for discussion at the meeting.

“I’m delighted that we will be joined by Sergeant Pat Flanagan and Bernard Kearney who will be giving a unique insight into the problems being faced by communities in Galway, as well as measures which can be taken to deter criminals,” said Deputy Ó Cuív.

John Connolly, a former city councillor, said crime cannot be effectively tackled when garda numbers are dwindling.

“Every community across Galway has felt the effects of this crime wave that is sweeping across the country. Garda numbers have decreased significantly over the past five years under this Government, and despite commitments on Garda recruitment, it will take years before we see more boots on the ground.

“The fact of the matter is that the Gardaí need more resources now, not in a few years’ time. Not a week goes by without media reports about the latest burglary or robbery and people are becoming increasingly fearful in their own homes, especially those who are elderly or living on their own,” said Mr Connolly.

Meanwhile, county councillor Mary Hoade – also a candidate for Galway West – said: “People are really worried about their security, in both rural and urban communities.  There is real concern about burglaries and many feel a greater sense of isolation than they did a number of years ago.

“Since 2013, ten Garda stations in Galway have closed leaving communities across the county more exposed and vulnerable.  Garda numbers have also been slashed, from 601 in 2010 to 564 in February this year.

“Criminals are taking advantage of these depleted resources and we have had a number of high profile robberies, being carried out by organised gangs,” said Cllr Hoade.

The meeting will take place in the Galway Bay Hotel tonight (November 30) at 8pm.

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Sceptical comments made by City Councillor Noel Larkin about the merits of a tram system for Galway have been lashed as ‘off the rails’ by GLUAS backers.

The debate about the need for a light rail system in the city resurfaced last week when Independent public representative said Galway would be transformed into “a giant building site” and would be “crippled” during construction.

Cllr Larkin, a businessman, pointed to problems with delays and cost overruns during the construction of a tram in Edinburgh and claimed the same would happen in Galway.

Tram Power, a UK light rail company that backs the Galway GLUAS, has already refuted Cllr Larkin’s claims and say the project is sustainable, practical, environmentally friendly and has the support of the people of Galway.

Now local campaigner, Brendan Holland, of Holland’s newsagent on Williamsgate Street, this week has come out and issued a staunch defence of light rail.

A former chairman of the GLUAS project, Mr Holland said he took issue with Cllr Larkin’s remark that it would be “utterly stupid”.

“To defend this remark he made only two points about the delay and overspend in the Edinburgh Tram project,” said Mr Holland.

“But delays and overspends have nothing to do with the final projects and the benefits of light rail. This is a function of the overseer. It was proposed that the GLUAS would be funded by private funding and this type of funding tends not to have a habit of being over budget or over time.

“Public projects generally seem to suffer from this and one does not have to look too far away from the city centre in the past for proof of this. Surely this is a not a reason not to build a public transport system, surely one learns from the past and not fall into the same trap.”

Mr Holland said you can’t make omelettes without breaking eggs and that spurious arguments about cost overruns and delays were made about the LUAS in Dublin.

“However when the dust settled, I have yet to hear someone, anyone say ‘take up that bloody LUAS it’s useless’. All the properties, businesses, residents and the entire city have benefited from being on the line and the LUAS has now become the symbol of Dublin,” he said.

Mr Holland said Cllr Larkin didn’t look at the positive experiences of light rail, such as Besancon in the South of France. “Instead he chose to focus on the negative,” he said.

The newsagent added: “Councillor Larkin’s answer to the traffic problem is the N6 Galway City Transport Proposed Road (bypass). Once again the GLUAS was never about if we build a ring road around Galway or not. The GLUAS project was about moving people around the city in a fast comfortable manner which is an alternative to and as good as your own car.

“He is a member of City Hall’s transportation strategic policy committee. I would like to hear what his transport solutions are because I am getting a bit long in the tooth waiting for solutions that are no nearer now than they were when we made our proposals for GLUAS.

“If he is worried about the disruption to business while building light rail, maybe it he might start worrying about the damage to businesses while we sit waiting for something to be done.”

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At least five Galway girls are suffering a catalogue of life-changing debilitating ailments which they blame on the cervical cancer vaccine.

The Health Products Regulatory Authority has stated that it has received 934 reports of suspected adverse reactions to the human pappilomavirus (HPV) vaccine Gardasil, administered to teenagers to protect against a virus that causes seven out of ten cervical cancers. These included dizziness, headache, fainting, injection site swelling, injection site pain, raised temperature, muscle pain, nausea and vomiting.

Reports of persisting or chronic fatigue or severe pain, in some cases with other non-specific symptoms such as drowsiness, gastrointestinal upset, joint swelling, flu like illness and menstrual disorders have also been received.

These were forwarded to the European Medicines Agency’s EudraVigilance database for inclusion in global signal detection activities.

A review published earlier this month by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) dismissed a connection between the vaccine and two reported syndromes, complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), a condition where the heart rate increases abnormally on sitting or standing up, together with symptoms such as dizziness, fainting and weakness, as well as headache, aches and pains, nausea and fatigue.

However 127 cases of severe ongoing side effects in young Irish girls have been catalogued by a support group set up parents to fight for better treatment and to raise awareness about the risks associated with the vaccine.

At least five of them are from Galway, according to Senator Fidelma Healy Eames, who is backing the parents in their campaign.

Regret – Reactions and Effects of Gardasil Resulting in Extreme Trauma – believes a pattern of debilitating illnesses, including extreme fatigue, chronic pain and constant fits, has resulted from the vaccine in their daughters who were healthy and extremely sporty before taking part in the vaccination programme currently rolled out at secondary schools.

They point to the pharmaceutical manufacturer’s own clinical trials where 2.5% (one in 40) of participants reported a serious adverse event after taking the vaccine.

In addition, 3.3% (one in 30) also reported a new auto-immune condition. The parents say the risks outweigh the benefits with the current rate of incidence of cervical cancer in Ireland at 13 per 100,000 (or 0.013%).

The Irish parents are not alone in their campaign against the vaccine. A Spanish support group has criticised the focus of the EMA review, saying the two syndromes were only officially diagnosed in a small minority of cases.

In Denmark a study published by the Danish Medical Journal in February found there was a consistency in the symptoms of 53 patients examined, which included “pronounced autonomic dysfunction including different degrees of orthostatic intolerance, severe non-migraine-like headache, excessive fatigue, cognitive dysfunction, gastrointestinal discomfort and widespread pain of a neuropathic character”.

“Our findings neither confirm nor dismiss a causal link to the Q-HPV vaccine, but they suggest that further research is urgently warranted to clarify the pathophysiology behind the symptoms experienced in these patients and to evaluate the possibility and the nature of any causal link and hopefully establish targeted treatment options.”

In September the Danish health authorities replaced the Gardasil vaccine with its competitor Cervarix. Japan withdrew its recommendation for a HPV vaccine in 2013 due to concerns about long-term pain and numbness. Last August guidelines approved by the Japan Medical Association (JMA) for the evaluation and management of symptoms that begin after HPV vaccine injection were issued to healthcare professionals.

Health Minister Leo Varadkar has stated in the Dáil that the vaccine protects against two high-risk types of HPV that caused 73 per cent of all cervical cancers and could save an estimated 60 lives annually in Ireland.

“While no medicine (including vaccines) is entirely without risk, the safety profile of Gardasil has been continuously monitored since it was first authorised both nationally and at EU level,” he said.

“Healthcare professionals should therefore continue using them in accordance with the current product information.”

The HSE said in a statement that 300 women annually are diagnosed with cervical cancer in Ireland and 100 die from the disease. All cervical cancers are linked to high risk HPV types.

“Gardasil has been found to be over 99% effective in preventing pre-cancerous lesions associated with HPV types 16 and 18 in young women aged 16-26 years. Gardasil has been found to be over 99% effective in preventing HPV 6 or 11 related genital warts.

“The impact of a population wide Gardasil vaccination programme has been demonstrated in Australia where there has been a 50% decline in high grade cervical abnormalities in girls under 18 years and a 93% reduction in the number of diagnoses of genital warts in women up to 21 years of age.

“ There has also been an 82% reduction in genital warts diagnosed in heterosexual men up to 21 years of age which is attributed to herd immunity.”

The executive also insisted there was no evidence of long term “sequelae” to Gardasil.

The HSE pointed out that by March 2015, over 187 million doses of Gardasil had been distributed to 72 million people worldwide either as part of national immunisation programmes or by private doctors.

Life was changed forever by vaccine for cervical cancer

Mary O’Malley* from Galway City, said her twelve-year-old daughter had been a sports fanatic before receiving the HPV vaccine in 2010.

After the first shot she had sore glands, headaches and tiredness, all normal symptoms which subsided after a few days.

Following the second shot, she had profuse bleeding from the injection site and then developed severe headaches. Her mom put it down to her being run down from doing too much sport.

Within eleven months the teenager was barely able to get out of bed. She was surviving on rice cakes and water yet piled on three stone in two months.

Every inch of her body ached. Numerous trips to the GP and tests conducted at the hospital failed to get a diagnosis other than teenage hormones or emotional problems.

She eventually had to give up school and studied at home for the final two years, managing to pass her leaving cert despite her illnesses. In 2013 a paediatrician diagnosed her with chronic fatigue syndrome. It was only when Mary discovered a parent in America complaining about the exact same symptoms in her daughter on a health website that a link with the HPV vaccine emerged.

“From day one my daughter said she didn’t feel right after the vaccine and I didn’t listen to her,” she sighs, tears in her eyes.

“The initial symptoms – she’s learned to cope with them – but now there’s new chronic pains, her left leg has started to turn in, 18 months ago she lost her eye sight, it came back but the peripheral sight in her left eye never came back. She’s under a neurologist for ice pick headaches,” explains Mary.

“She has no social life, she can’t go into town, she’s never been to a disco, she couldn’t go to her debs. She’s lost most of her friends since dropping out of school – yet nobody cares.”

A dad from South Galway said his 15-year-old daughter was a county camogie player before her life changed dramatically five months ago. She collapsed on a GAA pitch and was out cold for thirteen minutes.

After that, the fits kept occurring, even when she was sitting on a chair. She sleeps up to 20 hours a day and can no longer go to school. A single dad, he cannot leave her alone for long in case she passes out.

Medical tests have revealed low blood pressure but so far no definite reason has been uncovered for her dramatic change in health.

When he read accounts of the girls published on the Regret website, he recognised all of the symptoms, none of which were present before she got the vaccine when she was twelve.

“My girl’s personality has changed completely. She used to be so outgoing. She used to do sean nós dancing. She can’t do anything now. The other mothers don’t want her over because they’re afraid she’ll collapse.”

After meeting with eight such parents from across the region, Oranmore Senator Fidelma Healy Eames has raised the plight of the girls in the Seanad. She is calling on the Minister for Health Leo Varadkar to set up a multidisciplinary team to investigate the cases and to properly treat the teenagers.

She is also urging the HSE to accurately outline the possible side effects in their leaflets so that parents can make an informed choice.

“These girls all have very similar symptoms in common which they only developed after the vaccine and they can’t find out why they have them. They were all gifted at sports. We have a duty of care to them and to the next round of girls who get the vaccine – we could be robbing their teenage years from them,” he exclaimed.

“We’re not trying to scaremonger – I’ve been subjected to a lot of abuse on social media since I raised this. But these girls are very sick, they’re totally debilitated, their personalities have changed. The doctors’ hands are tied because this is public health policy.”

Mary would dearly like a holistic assessment of her daughter’s condition so that an overall plan of action could be drawn up together by medics across the specialities.

“Denmark and Japan have clinics up and running and protocols there to treat these girls. We want to be able to go to a GP without being dismissed, without being told it’s in their heads. Say that to a girl who is a bungling mess, who can’t put on her clothes because of the horrific pain, who can’t brush her teeth or even stand up.”

*Names changed or not used to protect the privacy of the girls

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A 39-year-old mother is to stand trial tomorrow, along with her former partner, charged with cruelty and neglect of four of her children.

The pair, who cannot be named in order to protect the identity of the children, pleaded not guilty before Galway Circuit Criminal Court this morning, to one sample charge of wilfully ill-treating, neglecting, abandoning or exposing one of the children, or causing or allowing the child to be ill-treated, neglected, abandoned or exposed, in a manner likely to cause unnecessary suffering or injury to the child at a Co. Galway location on September 1, 2006, contrary to section 246 (1) and (2) of the Children Act 2001.

A jury of nine men and three women was empanelled to hear evidence in the trial which is expected to last up to three weeks.

Mr Shane Costelloe SC, prosecuting, said the trial would start tomorrow (Wednesday) when both accused would be charged before the jury with several other similar offences.

He warned people in the packed courtoom, who had been summoned for jury service, that the trial would be held ‘in camera’ as it involved children and they could not identify those children, whose names were mentioned in court this morning, to anyone outside of the courtroom.

Judge Karen O’Connor reiterated this warning to the entire jury panel and added they could not, by law, identify the children or discuss anything they had heard in relation to the family, to anyone outside of the courtroom.

“The rights of the children have to be protected and are protected in law,” she warned.

Mr Conor Fahy BL, prosecuting, told the jury panel, witnesses to be called for the prosecution case included numerous HSE staff, teachers from a number of schools, addiction counsellors and numerous Gardai who had investigated the matters before the court.

Judge O’Connor sent the jury home and asked them to return tomorrow morning when the trial is expected to begin.

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The Taoiseach has told the Dáil that the emergency department at UHG is not fit for purpose.
He made the comments during a special meeting to sign off on a €665 million bailout for the health service.
The bailout is around 10 per cent higher than had previously been signalled.
This now means that both the Taoiseach and the Minister for Health have acknowledged that UHG’s casualty unit is not fit for purpose.
Minister Leo Varadkar made the assertion in July during a visit to the A&E department, but five months on, it remains one the most overcrowded in the country.
Today in the Dáil, Enda Kenny said the unit is one of the country’s most inadequate facilities.

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Hundreds of County Galway farmers are set to benefit from new compensation measures on restricted land specially designated for the protected hen harriers.

Galway members of the Irish Farmers Designated Lands (IFDL) have been engaged in an intensive lobbying campaign for changes to Special Protection Areas (SPAs) for hen harriers, and this looks set to reward its members with a compensation package next year.

Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney has unveiled details of a hen harrier scheme for farmers who have farmland designated for the protection of the hen harrier.

The measure, which is still being developed, will come under the LLEAS (Locally-Led Agri Environment Scheme).

The new scheme, in addition to one announced in May, gives a commitment to pay €23 million per year for five years to farmers who farm in hen harrier regions.

Most farmers in hen harrier regions will receive €370 per hectare, provided they join the appropriate schemes.

The scheme is due to come into effect in the third quarter of 2016, and the payment will be made on the basis of actions taken and income forgone.

Liam Connaire, committee member of Galway IFDL, welcomed the package. “Both announcements are a welcome development and I am satisfied that the hard work and intensive lobbying of the group on this specific issue has paid huge dividends for all farmers in hen harrier regions,” he said.

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It is costing more than €80,000 in Garda overtime to implement crime prevention measures for the annual Ballinasloe October Fair.

The figures were revealed at a meeting which was convened to discuss the prospect of having Traveller sulky racing in the town for the festival.

It emerged that there were five sergeants and 32 rank-and-file members deployed especially for the event which takes place over an eight-day period. Members of the Emergency Response Unit were also present.

But security for the event has proved extremely expensive for the State as they are facing a bill of around €82,000 in Garda overtime for the duration of the fair.

Chairman of Ballinasloe Municipal Council, Cllr Michael Finnerty said that he was shocked by the Garda bill for overtime. He said that it was given to them at a recent meeting to discuss Traveller sulky racing.

“I am horrified that it is costing so much to maintain a Garda presence and this is something that has to be looked at into the future. It unfortunately conveys the impression that Ballinasloe is a no-go area.

“This is an unacceptable outlay by the State and it is something that we will be addressing at local level. The problems have to be tackled,” Cllr Finnerty added.

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Connacht IFA Regional Chairman, Tom Turley, has this week vowed that ‘clarity and transparency’ will be brought to the table when the association’s National Council meet in Dublin on December 15 next.

He told the Connacht Tribune that while there was ‘widespread anger, frustration and hurt’ on the pay levels at the top of the organisation, he was now confident that ‘they would get to the bottom of what went on’ at their meeting on Tuesday week.

“There was a lack of clarity, a lack of transparency, a lack of information and a lack of trust over this pay controversy but on December 15, I expect serious progress to be made on those issues,” Tom Turley told the Connacht Tribune.

He said that the IFA members had a very strong faith and trust in the former Chief Economist of the Association, Con Lucey, who now had been given a very clear brief to review issues of corporate governance and related matters including remuneration.

Mr Turley said that while it had been the most difficult and trying period that he had ever experienced in the IFA, he had been encouraged over the past week by the support of ordinary members on the ground.

“What I have seen emerge is an understanding on the ground through these very difficult times, that voluntary office holders in IFA are not the ones to blame for this terrible mess that we’re now in,” he said.

He said that ordinary members of the IFA could make submissions in strictest confidence to: conluceyreview@ifa.ie by next Monday, December 7.

“The Executive Council of the IFA has also made it quite clear that any professional assistance that Con Lucey requires will be provided to him, including a forensic audit expert.

“I expect that we will be in a position following our December 15 Council meeting to be able to issue a clear and transparent statement on the whole pay issue in the IFA,” said Tom Turley.

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Rural GPs have seen reductions in resourcing of nearly 50% in the past six years alone – leaving many clinics no longer viable and therefore on the brink of closing down for ever.

That was the stark message delivered by a delegation of rural doctors – including Carraroe GP Peter Sloane – when they met with the Fine Gael Health Committee last week. They warned that General Practices would go the way of the rural Garda Station and the small post offices – consigned to history by stealth.

“Unless changes to resourcing are urgently implemented, this will mean the end of the rural GP, whom communities have cherished and relied on for decades,” said committee spokesperson and Ballyvaughan GP Liam Glynn.

The delegation highlighted the pressing need for resources in rural general practice, the lack of which has plunged the service into a crisis not seen in Ireland since the mid-eighties.

The GPs – from Galway, Mayo, Roscommon, Clare, Donegal, Sligo, Tipperary and Wexford – said that they wanted to remind the Committee of the many communities had lost their local General Practitioner, with little chance of securing a replacement unless the resourcing issues in rural practice are urgently dealt with.

“Community general practice receives less than 2.5% of the overall health budget despite having over 90% of the patient contacts in the health service. This is compared to 8.9% in the UK where they are currently campaigning to see that increased to 11%,” said Dr Liam Glynn.

“General practice is the universal front-line service nationwide. Every day our highly qualified GPs provide high-quality, comprehensive, continuous care across the country – now Ireland is losing these doctors to emigration and retirement.

“The role of the GP in the community does not appear to be sufficiently valued by this Government, as successive cuts to primary care have set community services back decades,” he added.

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Patients bent over with severe spinal conditions are waiting two years or more for surgery, the HSE West Regional Health Forum meeting has heard.

One such patient with scoliosis, a condition which causes abnormal curvature of the spine, was told that a lack of funding was behind a delay of at least two years before an elective surgery could be carried out, Independent Councillor Catherine Connolly revealed.

In answer to her questions tabled to the HSE, it was revealed there were 816 people on the inpatient waiting list for orthopaedics – 43 of them waiting 18 months or more. There were 4,627 languishing on the outpatient waiting list – 780 of them for at least a year-and-a-half.

While other patients on waiting lists were getting called to private hospitals for appointments – which would be paid for by the HSE – spinal surgery cannot be carried out privately as there was a lack of spinal surgeons, Cllr Connoly said.

“The waiting lists for orthopaedic surgery are truly shocking. How can you stand over it? It’s two years for an MRI and two years for spinal surgery,” she complained.

The Chief Operating Officer for the Saolta group hospitals, Ann Cosgrove, said there were lengthy waiting lists locally and nationally.

For more on this story, see this week’s Galway City Tribune

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Galway City Council is examining the introduction of a major overhaul of traffic flow on Dominick Street, Raven Terrace and Fr Griffin Road.

As well as the creation of a new link road between Lower Fairhill Road and Munster Avenue, a one-way system is being considered.

The move is part of a bid to tackle the chronic traffic congestion in the area during peak hours on what is a narrow roads system.

The local authority is in discussion with landowners around Munster Avenue and Lower Fairhill in a bid to open up Burke’s Lane, a cul-de-sac access road behind Monroe’s.

The Council is hopeful that agreements can be reached before the end of the year and for the work to go ahead next year.

Engineers are considering a one-way system where vehicles heading west out of town would travel down Lower Dominick Street (by the Arts Centre) and out Burke’s Lane, while those coming into town would travel along Upper Dominick Street (by the Róisín Dubh).

For more on the plans, see this week’s Galway City Tribune

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The city’s retail community has been put on ‘red alert’ for drug addicts and other criminals shoplifting in the lead-up to Christmas, potentially costing tens of thousands of euro.

Galway’s top Garda has confirmed there has been a spike in thefts from shops and warned retailers to be vigilante ahead of the start of festive shopping season this weekend.

The city’s growing number of heroin abusers, who loot in order to feed their addiction, can be directly blamed for the large rise in thefts from shops, according to Chief Superintendent Tom Curley.

In his report to this week’s Galway City Joint Policing Committee (JPC), Chief Supt Curley said the number of thefts from shops has increased by 22% in the 10 months to the end of October.

There were 471 thefts from retailers in that period, he said, which is 85 more than the same period last year.

Chief Supt Curley attributed the rise in thefts to heroin users who are “shoplifting to feed their habit”. He estimated that there are currently between 250 and 300 heroin users in the city, and that it remained a “serious problem” that was “worrying”.

Chief Supt Curley said the number of incidents of drugs for sale or supply was 78, down 28%. The numbers of drugs raids may be reducing but, he said, the amounts of drugs seized in each raid was increasing.

Incidents of people being caught in ‘simple possession’ of drugs also fell by 3% to 196 incidents, but Chief Supt Curley assured the meeting that the level of resources available to the Drug Squad hasn’t been reduced.

For more on this story and an extensive four-page ‘Focus on Crime’ feature – including a breakdown of statistics – see this week’s Galway City Tribune

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A distressed grey seal pup found near Grattan Beach this week has been sent to a sanctuary in Wexford.

The male Atlantic Grey seal pup was discovered by City Council workers on Tuesday morning on the footpath near the lifeguard hut just off the beach. Rescue workers described the pup’s condition as “thin and dehydrated”.

The baby seal is estimated to be two weeks old.

Mary Joyce Glynn from Galway & Claddagh Swan Rescue, who took part in the rescue operation, explained that at this age pups should be constantly in their mothers care.

They still moult their white feathers at this age, and do not enter the water until their feathers are fully moulted at three to four weeks old – under their mother’s guidance.

Some pups are separated from their mothers before they have a chance to learn their smell and call. If the mother does not recognise her pup, she will not allow it to suckle from her.

However, in this case it is believed the young pup was separated from his mother while she was out to sea during stormy weather conditions – causing the pup to panic and move further inland.

For more on the seal and his fate, see this week’s Galway City Tribune

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Gardaí across Galway are advising against all unnecessary travel this evening as Storm Desmond hits.
A status red weather warning has been issued for Galway and the west and north-west.
Persistent heavy rains are expected to lash the county from this evening.
The highest level rainfall alert has just come into effect, and Met Eireann is predicting that extremely heavy rain will fall in Connacht, Donegal, Clare and Kerry.
It says severe accumulations in excess of 70mm can be expected, with greater totals on higher ground.
The warning will remain in effect until the early hours of Sunday morning.
The forecaster has also issued a Status Orange wind warning for Galway, with winds of up to 120 km/h set to whip across the county tonight.
That warning will remain in place until six tomorrow evening.
Gardai are warning motorists using the M6 motorway to exercise extreme caution, as high winds are creating dangerous situations for vans and lorries.
Galway City Council is also urging caution, particularly with the possibility of spot flooding on roads across the city.
It’s also advising caution in exposed coastal areas including along The Prom in Salthill.
Galway County Council has issued a warning to motorists, advising them to be on the alert for fallen trees or powerlines and flooding.
The council is also asking people not to travel unless absolutely necessary.
3 minor roads are closed due to flooding in the Ballylee area near Gort at Carrowbaun and Newhall.
There’s also some flooding on R460 at Kilmacduagh, but road is currently passable.
Road users are being asked not to drive into floods unless they are sure that it is safe to do so.
Meanwhile, the switching on of the Christmas lights in the Square, Athenry this evening has been cancelled as a result of the weather.
The event was due to take place at 7pm has been called off
Organisers say they’re hoping to reschedule the event in Athenry for 7pm on Monday

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A gust of more than 118km/h was recorded at Mace Head off Galway tonight as Storm Desmond batters the west coast.

The 118.5km/h gust was recorded at around 7pm. Since then, they have been peaking at just under 110km/h.

Average winds speeds at the moment (9.30pm) are 76km/h, and they are expected to increase over the next hour.

Rainfalls of in excess of 100mm are expected in the Connemara area, with more than 70mm expected elsewhere across Galway.

Gardai have repeated their warning that only essential journeys should be made by motorists, and cyclists and pedestrians should stay off the roads.

There are reports reports of flooding and surface water on roads in Barna, Spiddal, Cornamona, Salthill, Craughwell, Loughrea, Kiltullagh, Tuam, Portumna, Ardrahan and elsewhere.

There are also reports of branches down on the Tuam-Kilmaine Road at Kilbannon. Emergency services at the scene.

A fallen pole at Victoria Place off Eyre Square earlier this evening has been moved.

Traffic cones from roadworks near Luimnagh on the Headford Road have blown across the road and posing a hazard.

The Status Orange wind warning remains in place until 6pm on Saturday, while the Status Red rain warning is in place until 3am on Sunday.

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Galway could learn a few lessons from a new hospital in Kilkenny on the treatment of vulnerable cancer patients, according to a local TD.

Unlike University Hospital Galway, cancer patients do not have to queue up in the Emergency Department of this particular hospital in Kilkenny.

Galway East TD Paul Connaughton Jnr visited the newly-opened St. Luke’s Hospital in Kilkenny to see at first-hand how cancer patients visiting the Emergency Department are treated.

He said that similar systems need to be put in place for patients at UHG as at the moment cancer patients in Galway are second-class citizens.

“In recent months I have been contacted by cancer patients and their families who are concerned that they have to enter UHG via the Emergency Department and, in many cases, have to spend hours, including overnight, on trolleys, among very sick people at a time when their immune systems are at their lowest because of chemotherapy.

“Other hospitals around the country have systems in place so that a cancer patient whose immune system is suppressed and who presents at A&E with an infection, a problem with a portacath or adverse reaction to drugs, goes directly to an oncology area or ward and does not have to spend hours waiting.

“St. Luke’s Hospital in Kilkenny is a new hospital which streams patients and is one where oncology patients don’t have to spend endless hours in A&E,” Deputy Connaughton pointed out.

He visited the hospital last week and said that it was “an eye-opening experience” when it came to the admission of cancer patients.

The Fine Gael TD said that the hospital had adopted a welcome approach when it came to admitting patients.

He said that there was a solid liaison system in place with local GPs and he also found that there was a priority on patient needs.

“I have been in contact with Minister Leo Varadkar in relation to the need for a new A&E for UHG and I believe that the systems in place in Kilkenny should be incorporated into any new facility in Galway.

“I have also raised the issue of cancer patients having to access UHG via the A&E with the Emergency Department Taskforce and will continue to raise this issue.

“Last week’s visit to Kilkenny really brought it home to me that cancer patients in the West of Ireland who attend UHG as their cancer centre of excellence, need to be kept away from the main A&E area, where staff are already under incredible pressure,” Deputy Connaughton added.

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A teenager has been sentenced to eight months in prison for duping three people into lodging money into his bank account for non-existent One Directions tickets which he advertised for sale on the DoneDeal website.

Dean McKeown (19), of 14 Fana Glas, Ballybane, pleaded not guilty at Galway District Court this week to charges under the Theft and Fraud Offences Act.

Three people gave evidence they had responded to a advert on the Done Deal website between December 12 and 14 last year, which advertised six One Direction tickets for sale.

One woman said she knew the tickets were already sold out but she rang the number of the advertiser given on the website and bought the tickets over the phone.

All of the witnesses said they lodged varying amounts of money into McKeown’s bank account but never received the tickets.  They had tried to contact the mobile number given in the advert but it was never answered in some cases and, in one instance, one of the victims was told McKeown was in hospital and that had caused the delay in sending her the tickets.

All of the victims contacted Gardai when the tickets never arrived and they realised they had been duped.

One victim said he had lodged €320 to McKeown’s account for three tickets.

A woman said she lodged €480 for six tickets, while another woman said she lodged €325 for four tickets and had even transferred €5 to McKeown’s account so that he could send the tickets to her by registered post.

Garda Jason Kelly said a third woman had rang him from Cork to say she was ill and could not attend court.  Charges relating to her case were struck out as she was not present in court to give evidence.

Garda Kelly said he contacted the bank and received a printout of all transactions relating to McKeown’s bank account.

The records showed the monies from the three victims had all gone into his account and had been withdrawn almost immediately.

The male victim was the first to contact Gardai and McKeown was arrested and interviewed last January in relation to that.

He said he didn’t have a clue how the money got into his account and that someone else must have used his account.

He claimed to have lost his bank card and someone must have used it, but he didn’t know how they got his PIN.

Garda Kelly said that when the other three victims made complaints, he again arrested and interviewed McKeown on May 6.

On that occasion, McKeown told Garda Kelly his PIN and account number were with the bank card he had lost.

He said he had closed the bank account when he noticed the transactions and he reported the matter to the bank.

He also claimed he had never placed a advert on Done Deal and he was not the person who had spoken to the victims who rang the mobile number given on the website.

Garda Kelly said the phone number could not be traced as the user had used a ‘pay as you go” SIM card, which could be bought in any shop and could be easily discarded afterwards.

“An advert can be placed directly on the Done Deal website using this type of SIM and the price of the advert is taken from the credit on the phone.  It cannot be traced,” Garda Kelly explained.

McKeown said in evidence he lost his bank card on a night out and his account number and PIN were with it.

Judge Mary Fahy said that normally, when a person loses their bank card, money is taken out of their account.

“I never heard of money going in.  If someone got my card, I wouldn’t mind if they put money in my account,” she joked.

Insp Mick Dwyer said McKeown was fully aware and complicit in what was going on.

Judge Fahy agreed and she convicted McKeown, sentencing him to a total of eight months in prison. Leave to appeal was granted.

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A budget of nearly €137 million has been adopted for Galway County Council for next year, with an eleventh-hour extra allocation from the Department of Environment to partially offset a big shortfall from a decreased rates valuation for utilities divided up by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil councillors.

The interim Chief Executive Kevin Kelly reminded councillors there was no provision for contingencies in the 2016 budget which he described as challenging. There was €104m earmarked for gross expenditure and €32m spending for capital projects.

Commercial rates would remain unchanged for a seventh year at €66.59, with the exception of Ballinasloe which had its rate increased by €3 to €55. Almost half the businesses in Ballinasloe will see rates jump by €105 a year, with a plan to bring rates in line with other county towns by 2024.

A provision of €100,000 has been set aside to offset the cost of providing free parking for two hours across county towns, with municipal district areas to decide whether to introduce the measure in the New Year in exchange for a reduction in their roads budget.

Free all-day parking in the lead-up to Christmas in county towns has been agreed.

A gap of €750,000 emerged in the books when the Valuation Office revealed that it had set rates valuations for the utility companies such as the ESB and Eircom at a lower rate than previously for the next five years.

Following a meeting between Junior Minister at the Department of the Environment Paudie Coffey with a delegation of councillors, further funding of €573,000 will be handed to Galway Council Council for 2016, Cllr Jimmy McClearn (FG) told the meeting.

“What was a difficult situation is a very manageable situation now,” he remarked. “It’s important we’re not living in a negative world. It’s a positive world. It’s not all bad lads – cheer up. You don’t see any fruit in the tree.”

A pact between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil divided this amount up, including an allocation of €300,000 to roads maintenance, €50,000 for disabled person grants, €40,000 each for public lighting and economic development, €35,000 for community grants and €30,000 for street cleaning.

No matter which way you looked at it, the council’s coffers were still down on 2015 by €113,000, fumed Cllr Noel Thomas, who said he did not want to be associated with any remarks welcoming the additional grant.

The Fianna Fáil Councillor urged the council to spend money on cleaning out gullies which would save millions of taxpayers’ money on repairing roads, much of it unnecessarily if the gullies were cleared regularly.

Cllr James Charity (Ind) said with that kind of budget hole, Cllr McClearn was “looking a lot more link Grinch than Father Christmas”.

Sinn Féin’s Tom Healy said the local authority should seek to retrofit public lighting with LED lights, which would give an annual saving of €900,000 immediately.

Director of Services for Roads and Transportation Liam Gavin said a massive capital investment would be required to change the 13,000 lights across the county under the charge of the council. But he said the savings would be significant.

Cllr Shaune Cunniffe (Ind) lambasted the council for its lack of provision for bad debts for commercial rates. Cumulative uncollected debts were going to “paralyse” Galway County Council as some of these businesses were long gone and there was no hope of ever collecting them.

Mr Kelly said last year’s arrears were €10m with a bad debt provision in the books of €4m.

“The opinion of the auditor is it should be a bit higher but he’s broadly satisfied with the bad debt provision. Today, by increasing that provision, you have to decrease expenditure somewhere else,” he explained.

Cllr Tim Broderick (Ind) said councillors were like ostriches in the sand, refusing to deal with the issue of uncollected rates and if the council were a business it would cease to exist with that level of debt.

The extra €577,000 in funding, as proposed by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, was passed, with seven voting against it, including the Sinn Féin councillors, Independents Shaun Cunniffe, Tom Healy, Jim Cuddy and James Charity.

The overall budget was adopted with 24 of the 39 councillors voting in favour of it.

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People are living in fear of being attacked in their rural homes across the county while some others are living in terror of a repeat attack, a public meeting on crime heard.

The crux of the matter is that there aren’t enough Gardaí on the beat, not enough patrol cars and too few police stations left open in rural Galway – that was the consensus of those who attended the meeting on crime prevention in the community.

The meeting was organised by the three Galway West candidates for Fianna Fáil, Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív, Cllr Mary Hoade and John Connolly, who chaired the event.

Sergeant Pat Flanagan, Crime Prevention Officer, and Bernard Kearney, of Muintír na Tíre, reiterated the importance of personal awareness re security matters and crime and said that a good community alert scheme was crucial to help make people safe in their own homes.

Sgt Flanagan outlined a number of ways individuals and the community can prevent crime or help Gardaí solve crime.

Having your house burgled, said Sgt Flanagan, was probably one of the most traumatic crimes for householders not only because personal property was stolen but thinking of strangers going through your rooms and invading your privacy was very distressing.

A number of people at the meeting said they believed the courts weren’t hard enough on burglars believing it was now considered a misdemeanour and those who did speak from the floor called for longer sentences. It was also contended that free legal aid fees should be collected from those convicted through social welfare payments.

There was also huge criticism from the floor at how many people re-offended while out on bail.

Deputy Ó Cuív said each case was different and that prison wasn’t always the answer.

“We have to be logical about this. You can’t jail people forever. The best thing is to get them away from a life of crime. And though many benefit from courses while in prison, one of the best stabilisers I have been told, is having a stable relationship.

“Being employed, too, reduces the chance of them reoffending. There’s a huge social issue here that has to be tackled. I believe that prison can become a university of crime for young people so sending people to prison for every crime is not the answer,” he added.

The message from the meeting was that the best way to reduce crime was vigilance, being aware of taking certain safety measures whether at home, in a place of business or in your car. But as well as individual responsiblities, communities, too, could help by being mindful of elderly people, especially those living on their own, being alert to strange and unusual movements in their areas, according to Sgt Flanagan who said he was more than happy to talk to residents associations and community groups.

Mr Kearney said Muintír na Tíre had helped set up a number of community alert groups and had recently set up a text alert scheme. He spointed out there were still a lot of vulnerable older people living in isolation in rural areas. These people, he said, needed to be checked on regularly and that was something communities could take on.

Cllr Mary Hoade said the moratorium on Gardaí had hit their numbers which meant less of them on the beat. The closure of ten Garda stations in rural Galway had not helped matters, she added.

John Connolly, who chaired the event, said: “Every community across County Galway has felt the effects of this crime wave that is sweeping across the country. Not a week goes by without reports about the latest burglary or robbery and people are becoming increasingly fearful in their own homes, especially those who are elderly or living on their own. I was shocked recently at the number of people who raised the issue with me on the doorstep,” said Mr Connolly.

Though burglaries, both in private homes and businesses, were much discussed, other crimes worrying those in attendance (there were about 80 in the Galway Bay Hotel in Salthill), were scams and bogus callers.

Sgt Flanagan advised people not to engage with unsolicited telephone callers or with cold callers to the door and never part with banking details.

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