Snippets
24 February 1999
Bypass works reveal East Mayo's
rich, Bronze Age history
BY TOM SHIEL
ARCHAEOLOGISTS have reported a number of significant
finds as work progresses on the multi-million pound bypass
project which is underway for the towns of Claremorris
and Knock in East Mayo.
Other important discoveries have been made by an
archaeological team, attached to Mayo
County Council, which is working on the £6 million
scheme to update and modernise the Claremorris sewerage
system.
A large number of ancient cooking sites, known as Fulacht
Fiadh, have been unearthed on both the bypass and sewerage
projects which would indicate a substantial Bronze Age
community in the area some 4,000 years ago.
Also, a number of Ring Forts have been pinpointed which
will be meticulously excavated at a later stage. Artefacts
will be cleaned, photographed and documented before they are
forwarded to the National Museum for storage.
Mr Gerry Walsh, senior archaeologist with Mayo County
Council, said yesterday (Tuesday) he was excited by the
finds and expected further interesting discoveries as Stage
2 of the bypass project pushed beyond Barnacarroll around
the village of Knock.
"All topsoil is being carefully removed to ensure that
nothing of archaeological importance is disturbed or
destroyed", Mr. Walsh explained.
Previous major construction projects in Mayo - especially
the Swinford
Bypass - revealed the area's rich past. And in 1994, Council
archaeologists monitoring the progress of the Ballinrobe
Sewerage Scheme excavations discovered a cooking site dating
back to 2,590 B.C., one of the oldest ever discovered.
Youth battles for life following
Kilmaine incident
A FILE is to be prepared for the DPP into an incident in
Kilmaine
last week in which an 18 year local youth was seriously
injured.
The teenager, Brian Durcan , from Frenchbrook, Kilmaine,
is battling for his life this week at Beamount Hospital in
Dublin.
Brian, who is eldest son of Louis and Mary Durcan,
sustained serious injuries in an incident at a chip van
which was parked in Kilmaine village in the early hours of
Saturday, Feb 13th. The youth was rushed to Mayo General
Hospital, Castlebar
and later to Beaumont.
It is understood that a young local man has been
questioned by Gardai in connection with the assault on Brian
Durcan and that a file is to be prepared for the Director of
Public Prosecutions on the matter.
Industrial action by Mayo
psychiatric nurses averted
BY TOM KELLY
INDUSTRIAL action by over two hundred psychiatric nursing
staff in Mayo has been averted following an eleventh hour
intervention by the Western Health Board.
Members of the Mayo Health Services Branch of SIPTU
served notice on the board a week ago of their intentions to
impose a work to rule from yesterday (Tuesday) morning.
The action would have seriously affected existing
services at St. Mary's Hospital, St. Teresa's Unit and the
Dementia Unit at the Sacred Heart Hospital in Castlebar, as
well as Day Centres and Day Hospitals in Ballinrobe,
Claremorris, Mulranny,
Westport,
Ballina
and Castlebar.
Branch members had voted by four to one to take the
action over the controversial appointment of a research
nurse in Westport and the board's refusal to accept an
overtime agreement negotiated by the Heath Services
Employment Agency.
Now, following protracted talks on Monday night, the
dispute has been suspended pending the outcome of an appeal
to the Labour Court over the Westport appointment.
The problem over the appointment arose because it was not
advertised in line with a standing agreement.
Mr. Martin Moran, secretary of SIPTU's Mayo Health
Services Branch, said if the status quo was not maintained,
his members would be left with no option but to enter a
dispute situation.
"Smelly" Kilkelly Project
Sanctioned but Residents are ...'Dumbfounded'
By AIDEN HENRY
MAYO County Council has given the go-ahead for a
controversial mushroom compost plant at Knockbrack,
Kilkelly, just over two miles from the main runway of Knock
International Airport. But the project is being strongly
opposed by local residents who claim that a foul smell would
be created which would be carried by prevailing
south-westerly winds to the airport complex.
The Chairman of Shammer/Knockbrack Residents'
Association, Mr. Chris Roche told the Connaught Telegraph
yesterday (Tuesday) he was "dumbfounded" by the Council
decision. Mr. Roche indicated that an appeal is now likely
to go to An Bord Pleanala. Such an appeal will have to be
lodged before mid-March.
Although nobody will comment officially, airport
authorities are also understood to be very concerned about
the compost plant which would involve the mixing of chicken
manure and straw - a process which would create a very
potent odour. There are concerns that any smell might
dissuade industrialists from setting up at the specially
designated zone which has been put in place to attract
industrialists to the area.
"Quite frankly, we were totally taken aback and surprised
by the Council's decision to grant planning permission", Mr
. Roche explained.
"We had put forward a strong case against the proposal on
the grounds of smell, poor access roads and the possibility
of pollution of groundwater supplies", he added.
The developer of the project is Mr. Cyril Gibbons who
hopes to locate his facility in a sandpit quite close to
Kilkelly
village.
The basis of the residents' objections are:- A strong
smell on an exposed site close to the town of Kilkelly as
well as adjoining houses, a Church, a school and old
peoples' residence and Knock Airport. Residents' Association
Chairman, Francis Henry claims that water used in wetting
the compost would become highly contaminated with organic
waste - a powerful pollutant.
Objectors claim that the compost operation would pollute
and adjacent stream which is part of the Moy drainage system
as well as polluting the underlying water which is the main
source of water for the town of Kilkelly and its
hinterland.
Kilkelly Community Council is opposing the plan on a
number of grounds, mainly on the grounds of odour and
possible contamination of water supplies.
Mayo Circuit Criminal Lists May Be
Heard in Galway
Judge lashes court facilities as
public must stand in street
CRIMINAL hearings in the Circuit Court in Mayo may have
to be moved to Galway because of the failure to provide
adequate facilities for court hearings.
Currently all Circuit Court criminal cases are heard in
Westport courthouse having been moved from Castlebar after
the jury room in this facility was condemned.
However at last week's sessions the Westport
facility was blasted for being totally inadequate and Judge
Harvey Kenny warned that the court's business may have to
move to Galway.
After the courtroom was cleared to allow the hearing of a
case in camera, Castlebar-based solicitor Mr. Tom Walsh,
said the building and facilities were inadequate for the
conducting of the court's business.
Those removed from the courtroom were forced to stand out
on the street or move across to the Castlecourt Hotel.
Mr. Walsh said Mayo County Council made rooms available
in the hotel but there were ongoing construction works in
the Castlecourt Hotel and it was not very satisfactory.
Judge Kenny said the ceiling in the court room should
never have been lowered and if there was natural light it
would be more operative.
"Some wise person put a floor over our heads," he said.
It was put in and was now "suffocating us." "The same people
would not work in the same conditions. It is wrong and it is
not fair on the people who have to come into this courtroom.
I don't know what we are going to do about it."
He continued: "It may be that we may have to move the
criminal court to Galway permanently.
"Until something is done to ease the situation of the
court we may have to consider moving the court to
Galway."
Crux continues over Clare Island
Post Office
An POST have been stamped as 'hardhearted' for failing to
deliver a service to a remote island community who have
without a post office for ten months. No one on Clare
Island, Co. Mayo, is willing to take on the job because of
the meagre remuneration package on offer.
Now the 165 islanders have to make a five mile sea
journey to the mainland and then walk a mile to post a
letter. Pensioners, those on the Dole, and those entitled to
Children's allowance have also to take the boat to Roonagh
to collect their money.
Island manager Donal O'Shea said he could not understand
why An Post was neglecting the island when other state
bodies like the ESB and Telecom Eireann were doing
everything in their power to develop the outposts.
He said: "There should be a special case for islands. You
are talking about a small but viable population.
"Every other Department wants to help us. The ESB did a
fantastic job in helping island development over the years.
So too have Telecom Eireann but An Post seem to have adopted
a take-it-or-leave-it attitude. We are not getting a service
from An Post.
"Old people have to go out in the boat to Roonagh and
walk another mile to Roonagh PO to collect their pensions,
if they don't a car to meet them at the pier."
Those running the Post Office receive an annual payment
of £5,800 for which they must provide a 5 day week.
Mr. O'Shea said the post office closed temporarily at the
beginning of June last because the McCabe family, who have
been associated with it since 1890, were not longer willing
to keep it open. He said: "Nobody is interested in taking it
over because of the low income involved. Several people
would be interested if the conditions were changed."
Mr John Foley of An Post said they were still interested
in providing a service to the islanders but due to the lack
of interest locally they had no option but to keep the Post
Office on the island closed.
He added: "The remuneration on offer is in line with the
volume of postal business on Clare island. A satisfactory
premises is required from which to run the business."
However, he added: "Should any islander wish to take on
the service at any stage we would gladly advertise it
again."
Connaught Telegraph - News &
Sport - February 1999
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