No change in number of COVID patients in Galway hospitals

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September 26, 2021

galway daily news hibernacle meet me at the castle claregawlay festival

Hibernacle: Meet Me At The Castle came to a close today as festival-goers enjoyed music from popular artists in the intimate surrounds of Claregalway Castle.

Those in attendance heard music from the likes of Lisa Hannigan, Saint Sister, Wallis Bird, Tolu Makay, Nealo, Jape, Daithí, Andy Irvine and DJ Sally Cinnamon.

Spanning over two days, the festival also saw artists come together to collaborate in ways they never have before, with Irvine collaborating with Lisa Hannigan and Jape, and Nealo shared a stage with Saint Sister and Wallis Bird.

Meet Me At The Castle was the most recent in a series of events by Hibernacle, the brainchild of three experienced and diverse event organisers: Úna Molloy, Pearse Doherty and Peter Kelly.

The first Hibernacle, a collaborative pilgrimage which took place in Doolin, Co. Clare during the week before Christmas, brought musicians together for a restorative retreat during the height of the pandemic.

More recent Hibernacle events include Meet Me In The Garden – a series of collaborative shows at The Chestnut Barr in Birr, Co. Offaly – and All Boats Rise – A month-long voyage by barge along the inland waterways of Ireland with folk duo Ye Vagabonds.

Galway TD welcomes progress on new Loughrea fire station

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September 26, 2021

Galway daily news Three people hospitalised after Galway City house fire

Galway East TD Seán Canney has welcomed confirmation that the new fire station for Loughrea is included in the Fire Services Capital Plan 2021-2025.

Deputy Canney said that Galway County Council has submitted a preliminary and detailed appraisal to the Department – which are being considered.

The next stage is the process is to appoint a design team to prepare the design, cost plans, tendering and then onto construction.

“I welcome the progress being made and I commend Cllr Geraldine Donohue for her work in supporting this project,” said the Independent TD.

“I also recognise the great work carried out by the Fire Service in bring forward this project together with the proposed new Fire Station for Athenry.

“Our Fire Stations need to be capable of supporting our firemen and women by having modern facilities available to them.”

COVID-19: 1,459 new cases reported today

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September 26, 2021

Galway Daily news Galway hospitals see COVID cases double in recent weeks

The Department of Health has reported 1,459 new cases of COVID-19 in the State this afternoon.

As of 8am today, 296 people with COVID-19 patients are in hospitals across the country, of whom 65 are in ICU.

At 8pm on Saturday, there were 13 people with the disease at University Hospital Galway and one at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe.

NUIG awarded €1m to drive equality strategy

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September 26, 2021

Galway Daily news Galway universities awarded over €2 million for new research equipment

NUI Galway has been awarded a special €1million fund to drive the University’s strategy and improvements in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.

Minister Simon Harris announced the Performance Funding as part of dedicated investment by Government for higher education institutions in recognition of innovative programmes to help create a better society.

NUI Galway is one of only five institutions to be awarded funding.

The fund was secured following the submission of a case study detailing recent actions to advance gender equality within the University.

It will support the expansion of work in the area of gender equality and the wider Equality, Diversity and Inclusion agenda.

President of NUI Galway, Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, said: “The award of €1million Government funding, a very significant portion of the funding available, to help progress the equality agenda is testament to the impactful work and dedication of our NUI Galway community in recent years.

“It is also a clear appreciation of NUI Galway’s commitment to advancing equality for all our staff and students consistent with our values of openness and respect.

“Diversity welcomes all the talents and, by doing so, makes for a better, stronger university.

“This work continues and is the responsibility of us all to support its progression in line with our focus on excellent work for the public good.”

Aoife Cooke, Head of Equal Opportunities at NUI Galway, said: “All of the people involved in progressing equality at our University are delighted with the award from Government and it is a huge boost to everyone as we embed equality, diversity, and inclusion in our culture and address equality challenges.”

With the establishment of a Gender Equality Task Force at NUI Galway, opportunities for women to progress in the University have greatly improved over the past four years.

As highlighted by the recent Bronze Athena SWAN Award for the University, a range of initiatives have been taken in relation to equality at the University since 2016/17, including improvement in the representation of women in senior academic roles.

The proportion of female staff holding the role of Senior Lecturer at NUI Galway increased from 33% in 2016/17 to 47% in 2020/21.

The proportion of female staff holding the role of Personal Professor in the University increased from 16% to 28% over the same period.

Galway remains county with lowest median age of COVID cases

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September 25, 2021

Galway daily covid-19 coronavirus galway cases 14 day incidence

Galway remains the county with the lowest median age of COVID cases in Ireland – three years younger than any other county in the State.

The median age of the 17,116 cases recorded here is just 27, while the next lowest in the country is Limerick at 30.

A total of 133 people have died from the disease in Galway according to the latest CSO data released yesterday, with a median age of 82.

Nationally, there were 21 coronavirus related deaths in the week ending Friday, 17 September.

The number of weekly cases was 8,662 – a decrease of 8% from the previous week and those under the age of 44 accounted for 76% of cases.

Leitrim, Longford, Roscommon, Sligo and Wicklow had the fewest cases, less than 100 cases in each county, in the same week.

Much colder weather forecast for coming days

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September 25, 2021

Galway Daily weather Falling temperatures and weekend rain mark weather for rest of the week

Met Éireann has said that temperatures will fall in the coming days to around average for this time of the year, becoming noticeably much colder across the country.

Temperatures are set to drop from around 20 degrees today in Galway to around 12 degrees Celsius on Tuesday.

But tonight (Saturday) will remain very mild in the West, with lows not dropping below 13 or 14 degrees.

Patches of light rain and drizzle will continue overnight with any clear spells making way for clouds towards morning and it will also become breezy, in moderate to fresh southerly winds.

Tomorrow, Sunday, will see rain spreading eastwards across Connacht throughout the morning, becoming heavy at times.

The rain will gradually clear eastwards in the afternoon, followed by cooler, fresher conditions.

It will be blustery, with fresh and gusty southerly winds, easing light variable as the rain clears.

Highest temperatures on Sunday will be between 16 and 18 degrees, becoming noticeably cooler in the afternoon.

Monday will see another noticeable change in the temperature, with much cooler conditions forecast across Ireland.

It will be a fresher day, with a mix of sunny spells and heavy showers.

Met Éireann says that showers will be most frequent over the western half of the country with the potential for thunderstorms.

Highest temperatures will then fall back to around normal for this time of year, at 12 to 15 degrees.

As for Tuesday, it looks set to be another cooler and wet day, with widespread heavy showers or longer spells of rain developing.

Galway athletes urge students to join UniCoV project

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September 25, 2021

An Olympic medal winning rower and an All-Ireland winning hurler have urged fellow students at NUI Galway to take part in the unicov.org rapid testing project to combat COVID-19.

Athlete-scholars Fiona Murtagh and Galway senior hurler Conor Whelan added their voices to the project as thousands of young people settle into the return to campus.

Galway hurler Conor Whelan at NUI Galway. Credit Aengus McMahon.

NUI Galway is leading the programme, which is seeking hundreds of student volunteers for rapid antigen testing and saliva-based PCR and LAMP testing, as well as conducting wastewater surveillance.

Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Fiona Murtagh said that sport and teamwork go hand in hand and that the Olympics was possible this year because of our safety measures in preventing the spread of Covid-19.

“In order to keep campus life here in Galway as normal as possible, I encourage everyone to work together in helping to control the spread of Covid,” said Fiona.

Please join me in taking the tests and participate in the UniCoV programme.”

Conor Whelan, All-Star and All-Ireland winning hurler with Galway in 2015, said: “I’m encouraging all students to volunteer for the UniCoV programme, to take the tests and work together as part of a team in the fight against Covid.

“It’s been great to see students back on campus and life going back to normal as we know it.

“But keep in mind the fight against COVID is still ongoing and follow the HSE guidelines.

“I encourage all students to volunteer for UniCoV programme in order to avoid any outbreaks and help with early detection.”

Unicov.org allows for large-scale comparative analysis of Covid-19 testing technologies to inform the development of early warning systems for future disease outbreak prevention and control.

More than 2,100 tests have been completed so far at NUI Galway, with the project coordinators targeting a significant rise in testing the coming weeks.

More than 400 employees and students have volunteered at NUI Galway alone, with the target of 2,000 participants at each of the four sites.

For further detail about the project and to register, go to www.unicov.org.

COVID-19: 1,335 new cases reported today

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September 25, 2021

The Department of Health has reported 1,335 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Republic.

As of 8am today, 282 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 65 are in ICU.

Health officials say that the daily case numbers may change due to future data validation.

Revealed: Areas in Galway with lowest & highest vaccination rates

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September 25, 2021

galway daily news Vaccine booster clinic continuing today for people in their 50s

The south of Connemara has one of the highest COVID-19 vaccination rates in the country, while Galway City East has among the lowest, new CSO data shows.

The CSO’s latest COVID update shows that at least 93% of the inhabitants in Conamara South LEA over the age of 12 are vaccinated, as of 9 September.

Gort-Kinvara LEA has also had an extremely high vaccine uptake, with 93% or more of the area’s inhabitants having received the jab.

In Galway City East however, just 80.4% to 83.6% of the inhabitants over the age of twelve years are vaccinated against COVID-19 as of September 9.

Loughrea, Tuam and Ballinasloe LEAs also have high vaccination rates of between 90.6% and 91.5%.

In Conamara North LEA, the rate is still high, but slightly lower at between 89.7% and 90.6%.

Galway City West, Galway City Central and Athenry-Oranmore all have vaccination rates of between 88.7% and 89.7%.

Boil Water Notice for 2,300 people in Barna

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September 25, 2021

Galway daily news Boil Water Notice for 2,300 people in Barna

A Boil Water Notice has been issued covering roughly 2,300 people living in the Barna area.

Due to problems with the water disinfection at Tonabruckey Reservoir, the notice has been issued for households drawing from the Barna section of the Galway City West Public Water Supply.

This Boil Water Notice covers an area stretching from Silverstrand, to as far out as Furbo on the main road.

The affected homes and businesses are in Barna Village, Truskey West and Truskey East, Barr Aille, Fermoyle, Ballard and along the coastal road.

Customers in the area served by Tonabrucky Reservoir will notice increased levels of chlorine in their water supply in the coming days as efforts are made to resolve this issue.

Tim O’Connor of Irish Water said “Public health is Irish Water’s number one priority and we would like to assure customers that the notice has been put in place to protect customers.

“We are aware of the impact that this notice will have on the area affected and thank our customers in advance for their patience and cooperation while we work as safely and as efficiently as possible to rectify the situation.”

“We advise customers in the affected areas to adhere to the Boil Water Notice until further notice. We will continue to work closely with Galway City Council and the HSE to monitor the supply and lift the notice when it is safe to do so.”

Irish Water and the City Council are investigating the Disinfection Boosting Station at the reservoir, and have said that they will attempt solutions to resolve the issue “as quickly and as safely as possible”.

In the meantime water must be boiled before drinking, making drinks with water, for use in the preparation of salads and similar foods, brushing teeth, or making ice.

Man missing from Athenry located safe and well

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September 24, 2021

Galway Daily news Missing Athenry man located safe and well

A 39 year old man who has been missing from Athenry since the start of the week has been located safe.

Gardai appealed for public assistance yesterday in looking for Nicolas Couch.

The Athenry man had been missing had been missing since Monday, September 24.

Gardaí have said this afternoon that he had been located safe and well.

Two Galway areas see rise in COVID rates

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September 24, 2021

galway daily news local electoral areas covid-19

The 14-day COVID-19 incidence rate has fallen in eight of Galway’s ten local electoral areas, with only two areas recording an increase in the latest data.

Both Galway City East LEA and Ballinasloe LEA recorded a higher incidence rate this week than last week, with rates of 590 and 199 cases per 100,000 people respectively.

Conamara North LEA and Tuam LEA recorded rates above the national 14-day rate of 390 cases per 100,000 people this week.

Conamara North’s rate was 395 (68 new cases in two weeks) while Tuam’s rate fell slightly to 452 (152 cases).

Elsewhere in the city, Galway City West’s rate decreased to 311 (79 cases) and Galway City Central’s incidence dropped to 370 (99 cases).

Just 39 cases were recorded in the two weeks to 20 September in Conamara South LEA, giving it a two-week COVID rate of 183.

But Athenry-Oranmore’s rate was even lower at 180 (59 new cases in two weeks) and Gort Kinvara recorded a rate of 196.

Loughrea LEA had the lowest COVID rate in the county this week at 42 cases per 100,000 people after just 33 new cases were recorded there in two weeks.

COVID-19: 1,163 new cases reported today

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September 24, 2021

Galway Daily news 25 percent drop in COVID cases in Galway hospitals

A total 1,163 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported by health officials this afternoon.

As of 8am today, 297 people with COVID-19 are hospitalised across the State, of whom 61 are in ICU.

The number of people diagnosed with COVID-19 at University Hospital Galway has fallen to 12, with four of those patients receiving care in ICU.

There are also two people with the disease at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe, but neither of the confirmed cases are in the intensive care unit as of 8pm on Thursday evening.

There were no further hospitalisations of confirmed coronavirus cases at either hospital in the 24 hours to 8pm yesterday.

Further decrease in COVID patients at UHG

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September 24, 2021

The number of people diagnosed with COVID-19 at University Hospital Galway has fallen to 12, with four of those patients receiving care in ICU.

There are also two people with the disease at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe, but neither of the confirmed cases are in the intensive care unit as of 8pm on Thursday evening.

There were no further hospitalisations of confirmed coronavirus cases at either hospital in the 24 hours to 8pm yesterday.

The Department of Health reported a further 1,355 COVID-19 cases in the Republic yesterday evening.

The chief medical officer Dr Tony Holohan said that the ongoing analysis of the epidemiological situation has informed the NPHET recommendation to evolve public health management of school settings from Monday next.

“The resumption of in-person education was associated with a significant increase in the numbers of children referred for testing in recent weeks,” he said.

“This increase was driven by the screening of asymptomatic children who had been identified as close contacts. This action was precautionary and was due to the diligence of parents and guardians bringing their children for tests.

“Despite significantly increased testing in this age group, there has only been a relatively modest increase in the detection of cases.

“We have also seen the associated positivity rate decrease from 16% to 5% which is very reassuring.”

‘Fridays for Future’ climate protests returning to streets of Galway

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September 24, 2021

Galway Daily news climate strike in Eyre Square

Young people in Galway will be coming out in protest against a lack of action against climate change once again today, as the ‘Fridays for Future’ campaign returns with demonstrations around the world.

Students from schools across Galway are expected to attend the demonstration in Eyre Square at 1:30pm.

This global movement has seen children across many countries come out in large protests against a lack of government action to secure their future from the damages of climate change.

These protests, like most public activities, have been severely curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic in the past year and a half.

This is the first such demonstration to take place in Galway City since June of 2020.

The invitation to today’s event in Galway on the group’s facebook page says “you have seen the people of our generation striking for our future around the world, and it’s your turn to take part.”

“2020 was the hottest year on record and there is more carbon dioxide in our atmosphere than at any point in human history.”

“Students across Galway will be leaving school on the 24th of September and gathering in Eyre Square (1:30) to protest the lack of Climate Action by our government, and we’re inviting you to join us and our peers worldwide.”

Lights installed on Eglinton Canal as water safety measure

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September 24, 2021

New lights on Eglinton Canal to improve water safety — Eglinton Canal. Photo: Cllr Mike Cubbard via Facebok

New sets of life have been installed on the Eglinton Canal in Galway City to improve water safety along the often dangerous waterways emptying into Galway Bay.

The LED downward facing lights have been installed at the Parkavara lock chamber in the Canal, near Mill street and Henry street on either side.

The project was a joint initiative between the city council and Lough Corrib Navigation Trustees, who are custodians of the canal, and also provided funding for the lighting.

The lights are meant to assist the volunteer group Claddagh Watch Patrol in their patrols of Galway City’s waterways to spot and assist people in trouble in the water.

City Councillor Mike Cubbard said that this is important progress on improving water safety in the city.

“I have always said that we need to continue to move forward in terms of water safety, this is progress, so thank you to the relevant staff who made this happen.”

NUIG’s Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge gets multi-million funding package

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September 24, 2021

Galway Daily education NUIG's Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge gets multi-million funding package

NUI Galway’s Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, the Irish Language college based in Connemara, has been guaranteed €3 million in funding.

The three year package will see Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge receive €1 million for each academic year, starting this year, which is €300,000 per annum more than the last three year budget.

Up to 2,000 students attend the wide range of undergraduate, postgrad, diploma, and teacher training courses provided through Irish for native speakers at the Gaeltacht centres in Gaoth Dobhair, Carna and An Cheathrú Rua.

Minister for the Gaeltacht Catherine Martin said “I am encouraged by the number of students from the Gaeltacht who go on to university and are able to do so in their native language in centres located in the Gaeltacht.”

The thousands of students who go to the Acadamh each year are proof that the department’s investment is being put to good use.

“The additional funding announced today will help in a practical way to further strengthen the Irish language infrastructure in the Gaeltacht,” Minister Martin added.

As part of the work programme agreed with the Acadamh, a person with a PhD in Early Education or a related field will be hired to hold workshops in the Gaeltacht Centres.

They will also seek to develop modules for the BA in Early Education to support training of early education practitioners working in naíonraí in the Gaeltacht and beyond.

Professor Breandán Mac Suibhne, the Acadamh’s Director of Studies, said that early education is particularly important in language planning.

“With this additional funding, NUI Galway will be able to better support those already working in playschools. And it will be able to provide a training system to help those entering the early education sector to identify and overcome linguistic challenges.”

“We are very grateful to the Minister and to the Minister of State and to all the staff of the Department for allowing us to play a central role in the development of this important sector.”

Gardaí appeal for help in finding missing man (39) from Athenry

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September 24, 2021

galway daily news missing man athenry galway

Gardaí have asked for the public’s help in finding 39-year-old Nicolas Couch who is missing from the Athenry area of Galway.

Nicolas has been missing since Monday 20 September 2021 and is described as being 6’2″ in height, of slim build, with blue eyes and greying hair.

When he was last seen, he was wearing dark jeans, a blue polo top and a black bomber jacket.

Gardaí and Nicolas’ family are concerned for his well-being.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Gardaí in Galway on 091 538000, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.

Galway jobs in the pipeline with Ethos Engineering expansion

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September 24, 2021