The Department of Health has reported 1,292 new cases of COVID-19 in the State this afternoon.
As of 8am today, 331 people with COVID-19 are hospitalised, of whom 54 are in ICU.
Health officials have said that the daily case numbers may change due to future data validation.
Over €17,000 in drugs and cash was seized by Gardaí during a raid on a house in Connemara last week.
The seizure came after Gardaí from the Divisional Drugs Unit searched a house in the Renvyle area under warrant on Thursday, September 3.
During the course of the search €10,000 worth of suspected cannabis herb and €4,000 worth of suspected cocaine was seized.
Gardaí also found and seized €3,400 in cash during the search of the house.
A man in his mid-20s as arrested and detained at North Western Regional Headquarters in Galway in connection with the seizure.
He has since been released without charge pending a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Galway International Arts Festival (GIAF) has commissioned award-winning visual artist Jennifer Cunningham to create a commemorative artwork for this year’s festival which runs until 18 September.
The Wayfarer is now available for purchase in poster form at the Festival Gallery on William Street until 18 September, and through GIAF’s online store. A limited edition first run of 100 posters has also been released.
Jennifer Cunningham’s hopeful piece is a celebration of the recent past as well as a look to a more optimistic future.
Commenting on the commission, Jennifer said it was a massive honour to be asked to design this year’s Galway International Arts Festival poster.
“As I was growing up each year Galway International Arts Festival brought me on a visual adventure or a journey with the colour and joy it brought to the city,” she said.
“I wanted to reflect that in this artwork, which is why I titled it ‘The Wayfarer’.”
Jennifer said that various ideas relating to the theme of Galway were discussed, before a Salthill-based piece was chosen.
“Growing up as a child, Salthill was the place to go. However, with the advent of cheap flights that may have been forgotten about.
“However, recently people have a greater appreciation of the local amenities and green/blue space.
“There has been an explosion in year-round swimmers and, indeed, these places have played an important role in allowing people to see their loved ones during lockdown.”
Jennifer Cunningham’s 2018 GIAF exhibition, After the Future, at the Festival Gallery was very popular this limited edition poster also promises to be hugely popular amongst collectors of arts festival posters and art lovers alike – and is the perfect souvenir for those who cannot be in Galway for the festival this year.
The unframed poster – 540mm (W) x 850 mm(H) – is available framed (€100) and unframed (€40) and is printed on high quality gloss paper and can be shipped worldwide.
It is available to purchase online here or in-person at the Festival Gallery on William Street from Wednesday – Sunday.
Galway city councillors have the opportunity next week to be ‘world leaders in active travel’ by supporting a trial of the Salthill Cycleway, Galway Cycling Campaign has said.
At Monday’s council meeting, councillors will vote on a six-month trial of a safe and separate cycleway from Kingston Road along the promenade to Grattan Road.
The route has 16 schools within 1km, and is seen as an important corridor from Knocknacarra, the most densely populated area of Galway city, to the city centre and beyond.
Galway Cycling Campaign says that a trial Salthill cycleway would provide an excellent opportunity for the council’s transport team to learn, evaluate, and incorporate feedback from the public ahead of a permanent planning design and consultation.
Kevin Jennings, chairperson of Galway Cycling Campaign, said that they want a clear statement from our elected representatives that this cycleway is a priority, and that a trial Salthill Cycleway will be made while permanent plans are being progressed.
“There has been over 20 years of planning and no firm action. In the meantime, the number of cars on our roads has doubled and they have gotten bigger,” he said.
“A cycle lane won’t just evolve organically, it has to be given space. Galway City Council was allocated 18 new active travel staff by the Department of Transport in February.
“There is a bottomless pit of money available for active travel from the government.”
Kevin Jennings said that there is policy, funding, and staff available to get Galway moving, as well as huge amounts of public and business support.
“There are no more excuses. Our councillors must insist that the Council delivers,” he said.
The status yellow weather warning for Galway has been extended until 9pm this evening, with heavy rain expected in many parts of the county.
Met Éireann says that there could be heavy, potentially thundery downpours breaking out this afternoon and evening, leading to some localised flooding.
The warning affects Galway and 21 other counties in the Republic.
Tomorrow, Friday will be mostly cloudy with scattered showers and highest temperatures of 16 to 19 degrees.
But there will be some sunshine this weekend and into next week, Met Éireann says.
The presence of farmed salmon in a river in Connemara home to wild salmon is a “serious cause for concern” Inland Fisheries Ireland has said.
IFI recovered farmed salmon from the Kylemore River in Letterfrack, also know as the Dawros River after being alerted to their presence by local anglers.
The anglers had captured fish with poorly formed fins and other distinguishing features that are associated with farmed salmon.
These recovered fish were tested by scientists from IFI, and were confirmed to be of ‘aquaculture origin’.
The discovery is a serious cause for concern for Inland Fisheries Ireland, according to its Head of Operations, Dr Greg Forde.
“The Dawros Rivers have been designated a special area for conservation for wild Atlantic salmon and we are seriously concerned about the impact that farmed salmon could have on this native species.”
“For example, farmed salmon could potentially transfer disease or could interbreed with the indigenous wild salmon population of this river.”
He also raised concerns about how they escaped fish could impact on the “genetically unique” stock in each river come spawning season in December.
“Early indications are that the farmed salmon, due to their size and development, could be capable of spawning this winter and interbreeding with wild fish thereby weakening the natural genetic pool unique to the Dawros River.”
Inland Fisheries Ireland’s investigations are on-going to determine the source of the escape. The state agency has notified the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, which is responsible for the issuing of aquaculture licences.
In an appeal to owners and operators of fish farms around the country, Dr. Forde said that it is essential that aquaculture businesses are secure, and without escapes to the wild, in order to preserve wild fish stocks, now and for future generations.
To report any sightings of escaped farmed fish, anglers and members of the public are encouraged to call Inland Fisheries Ireland’s confidential hotline number on 1890 34 74 24, which is open 24 hours a day.
Roscommon-Galway TD Claire Kerrane has welcomed the Government’s announcement to delay plans to transfer recipients of the PUP to Jobseekers payments.
The government had intended to transition recipients of the current rate of €203 to standard Jobseekers payments and those who had not yet returned to their jobs because of public health guidelines would be required to actively seek work.
Speaking about the announcement, Deputy Kerrane said that it was very welcome, but also ‘incredibly belated’.
“For months I have been warning the Minister about the impact of moving people from the PUP to Jobseeker payments, particularly while many have not yet returned to work through no fault of their own,” said Deputy Kerrane.
“She has been aware of the stress and financial uncertainty this potential transition has caused for many workers and self-employed people, and yet has waited to make this announcement at the last minute.
“This week, just 3,486 people closed their PUP claim and we can see that the rate of those returning to work has now slowed dramatically. Updated public health guidelines have allowed many sectors to reopen this month, but there are sectors still waiting until October to open in full.”
The Sinn Féin TD said that with over 140,000 people still receiving the PUP, it is clear that we need supports in place for those who cannot yet return to work through no fault of their own.
“Almost 27,000 people are currently in receipt of the PUP rate of €203, and would have been moved to Jobseekers next week.
“The plan to transition PUP recipients to Jobseekers terms would have devastated the finances of thousands of workers still unable to return to work while their sector remains closed under public health advice.
“For those without the required number of PRSI contributions, this would have meant moving onto the means-tested Jobseeker’s Allowance which takes entire household income into account.”
Galway County Council has approved plans plans to convert a former shop into a café and gift store as part of a new distillery coming to Ahascragh.
McAllister Distillers has been granted planning permission for a change of use to the former ‘Brookside Footwear’ store at The Square in Ahascragh.
The new café, located across the street from the new distillery in the old Mill buildings on Main Street, Ahascragh, which the county council approved plans for in October of 2020.
The shop and café are meant to enhance the planned tourist experience of the distillery, which will involve tours to its Tasting Room and museum of the Old Mill buildings’ history,
Along with changing the use of the premises, a single storey extension will be built to the side of the building to an outdoor seating area with a roof covering.
The project will also involve a coach set down area to the north side of the distillery, as well as a pedestrian crossing between the two premises.
“Regarding visitor tours, the numbers visiting are not expected to be large. One bus tour per week is the current expected level of visitation by organised tours,” further information submitted to the council stated.
“The bus tours will be told to arrive at the café from the east along Chapel Street and deposit their occupants at the identified location”.
“The bus will then park at the local RC church or at the cemetery and wait for the tour to be completed, which will be between 1 and 2 hours.”
Planning permission was granted by the county council for this project with eleven standard conditions attached.
This new craft distillery will produce both whiskey and gin using malted barley, and will employ an estimated 8 to 14 people when complete, between making the spirits and guiding tourists.
Nightly water restrictions in place on Inis Oírr have been extended for another three weeks.
Irish Water imposed nightly restrictions on the island’s supply back at the start of May.
The restrictions were introduced due to a drop in water reservoir levels on Inis Oírr.
They were originally set with a rolling date to end which was later pushed out to September 1, and has now been extended again.
They will now remain in place until at least September 24, and will continue nightly from 11pm to 7am the following morning.
Last year saw the Aran Island under nightly restrictions from later April until mid-August due to low reservoir levels, until a sustained spell of rain raised them.
Disability day services will be able to return to full capacity by the end of October as the final COVID-19 restrictions lift.
The government has confirmed that day service providers have been requested to develop individual plans to fully restore services by October 22.
This is the same date as a sweeping set of changes to public health measures that will see almost all restrictions lifted.
Minister of State and Galway TD Anne Rabbitte said “We are able to take these steps because our overall strategy is working and it is now safe for day services to increase capacity.
“I know how much this means to every person who can now look forward to enjoying normal times with friends and spending time doing what they enjoy again.”
“I want to thank families and carers for the support they have given their loved ones throughout this very difficult period.”
“I also wish to thank the staff of day service providers for their dedication and commitment in providing support to people with disabilities.”
“There are many unsung heroes in disability services, and I want to assure them that I have seen the huge efforts made to ensure that life has been as normal as possible for some of the most vulnerable in our society.”
Currently day service providers are operating at 60% capacity, which was raised up from 40% at the start of this year.
NUI Galway has received a renewed Bronze Athena SWAN Award in recognition of the University’s continued progression on gender equality.
The renewal of the award highlighted a range of initiatives being taken 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.
Over the same period, the proportion of female staff holding the role of Personal Professor in the University increased from 16% to 28%.
Bronze award status has also been granted to five of NUI Galway’s Schools in the latest award round, taking the total of school awards to eight.
President of NUI Galway, Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, congratulated his colleagues at NUI Galway and in each of the schools which received the Athena SWAN Bronze Awards.
“This ‘clean sweep’ of awards this year, with each application being successful, is a true reflection of the excellent work and dedication of all those involved,” he said.
“I am delighted that NUI Galway has renewed its Bronze Award status, as a clear appreciation of the University’s commitment to advancing equality to all our staff and students in line with our values of openness and respect.
“I note in particular, and welcome, the panel’s particular commendation of our academic promotions process and the ‘positive impact’ it has had with regard to gender representation. This is work as yet unfinished and the responsibility of us all.”
Aoife Cooke, Head of Equal Opportunities at NUI Galway, said: “The success of our Schools in the recent award round is particularly encouraging as it provides evidence of embedding equality, diversity, and inclusion in our culture and addresses the different equality challenges and development priorities in our communities.”
The School of Medicine also secured a renewal of a Bronze Athena SWAN Award. It has seen significant progression in women in senior academic grades, including women in Senior Lecturer roles going from 38% in 2016/17 to 50% in 2020/21; and women in Personal Professor roles increasing from 8% in 2016/17 to 28% in 2020/21.
The other Bronze Awards went to first time applicants – the Schools of Natural Sciences; Psychology; Chemistry; and Mathematics, Statistics and Applied Mathematics.
NUI Galway’s School of Nursing & Midwifery secured a Bronze Award in April 2021. The School of Physics and the School of Business secured Bronze Awards in 2020.
There have been another 1,545 new cases of COVID-19 reported by the Department of Health today.
Nationwide 335 people are in hospital with the disease, and 56 of those are being treated in the ICU.
Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, said that the incidence rate of COVID-19 cases is declining across the country.
The five day average of new cases is 1,407, and the number of hospitalisations and ICU admissions has also stabilised.
“Incidence of COVID-19 in adolescents and young adults is falling significantly and we are seeing early encouraging signs that the rate of infection plateauing in children of school going age.”
This is something that will continue to be monitored by NPHET in the coming weeks Tony Holohan added.
“Vaccination continues to offer the best protection against the most severe effects of COVID-19 including hospitalisation and death.”
“Anyone yet to avail of vaccination is strongly encouraged to do so. Local vaccination sites are available on HSE.ie“.
Tadhg lets loose on Colm over Frances death, Michelle finds out about Fiach’s lies, and Emma tries to take advantage in Ros na Rún.
Tadhg, believing that Colm doesn’t care about Mo or Frances’ death, comes to pay him a visit, while Colm tries to explain how heartbroken he is.
He has just gotten a letter from Mo, only to find she wants to be left alone. Will Colm obey Mo’s instructions, or will Tadhg make it academic by going to the police?
Michelle finds out that Fiach blackmailed Rory, and that he and Caoilfhionn stole money while paying poker in Canada.
Emma, not knowing what Michelle has learned, but seeing that not all is well between her and Fiach, plans to take advantage of the situation.
Catch up on all the latest in Ros na Rún this Thursday at 8:30pm on TG4, or get all the week’s drama in the double billing omnibus each Sunday.
GMIT has seen a significant increase in demand for STEM related course this year with points increasing for almost 60% of their honours degree programmes compared with 2020.
By far the most dramatic points increase the IoT has seen this year is in the B. Sc. (Hons) in Furniture Design, Making and Technology, which jumped 205 points.
Other level 8 courses across the GMIT campuses have seen their requirements go up by between 10 and 80 points.
Dr Michael Hannon, GMIT Registrar, said, “This year, we are delighted to see extraordinary demand for programmes in our Schools of Science, Engineering and Design & Creative Arts.”
“It has been a challenging year for everyone, especially for Leaving Certificate students who had the choice of sitting exams or opting for calculated grades or a combination of both.”
“Despite the challenges, the CAO system works and continues to be a fair, equitable and transparent system of distributing access to programmes nationally.”
However, he added that he is also of the opinion that the system of giving option to students is not working, and that different arrangements should be considered next year.
The spike in point requirement at GMIT this year comes in spite of the fact that 150 additional places for their courses that were added by Minister Simon Harris this year.
“We acknowledge that there will be many disappointed students who will not get their first preference to attend GMIT. However, we have healthy waiting lists that will allow us to make additional offers in Round 2,” Dr Hannon added.
While demand for STEM related courses has spiked, there has been a slump in demand for courses related to the hospitality sector.
A highly respected, hospitality focused part of GMIT is the International Hotel School, which offers courses in culinary arts, tourism, hospitality, and more.
Dr. Hannon said that the decline in demand for hospitality related courses is understandable in light of the impact of COVID-19.
“No doubt the sector will bounce back and we will continue to work with our national and international partners in this industry to promote the excellent career opportunities for students and graduates.”
New 1st year students at GMIT will be starting on campus from September 27 this year, later than normal due to the later Leaving Cert results.
Students in 5th and 6th class in primary schools and up to Junior Cert in secondary schools have been invited to enter the inaugural An Post Brain Busters programme.
The new programme takes a ‘gamification’ approach to literacy and numeracy, inspired by the excitement of escape room challenges.
Students must successfully complete a series of numeracy and literacy challenges to get the chance to represent their school at the national final in April 2022.
The concept, tasks and materials have been developed by teachers in collaboration with mathematician Dr Finn MacLeod, scientist Dr Niamh Shaw and author Oisín McGann.
Award-winning communicator, writer and explorer of space activities Dr Niamh said that An Post Brain Busters is designed to encourage curiosity and gives school goers the opportunity to put their problem-solving skills to the test.
“As children return to the classroom after so much disruption, collaborative, enjoyable activities which develop interest and instil pride in numeracy and literacy are key to the development of their academic interests and of Ireland’s impressive STEAM talent pipeline,” she said.
Managing Director of An Post Retail, Debbie Byrne, said that by making numeracy and literacy part of the everyday experience, they are also demonstrating the purpose of An Post – to act for the common good, improving the quality of life now and for generations to come.
“An Post’s Green Light strategy challenges all parts of our business to take bigger, braver steps in pursuit of our Sustainability goals, most particularly Climate Action, Decent Work and Sustainable Cities & Communities,” she said.
“And in turn we are challenging future generations to embrace Literacy and Numeracy in a practical way that will help them to support and enhance their communities and the wider world.”
National Broadband Ireland will host pop-up information events in Ballinasloe on Friday 17 and Saturday 18 September from 10am to 4pm to give people a chance to learn more about the National Broadband Plan.
The events, taking place at Tesco Superstore Menlo, will clarify when high-speed fibre broadband is coming to Galway, and how people can get connected.
A team will be on-hand at the pop-up events to register people for updates on the rollout in their area.
Peter Hendrick, CEO of National Broadband Ireland, said: “National Broadband Ireland is excited about the opportunity to engage directly with the people of Galway and give them information about when high-speed broadband will be available, let them know how they can connect to the NBI network and how they can register for progress updates specific to their Eircode.”
NBI currently has construction underway to bring fibre to 3,307 premises in the townlands in the Ballinasloe Intervention Area, which includes Clontuskert, Ahascragh, Kilconnell, Liscapple, Aughrim, Carnakelly, Fohenagh, Riversdale, Dowras, Kiltormer, and Rosmore among others, all of which are already eligible to order services on the new high-speed fibre broadband network.
Once these premises are available to order these customers can choose their broadband services from a retail service provider of their choice.
There has been a slight decrease in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases at Galway’s public hospitals in the latest data from the HSE.
On Tuesday evening, there were 25 people with COVID receiving care at University Hospital Galway and just one person with the disease at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe.
Five of the 25 people with COVID-19 at UHG were in the intensive care unit at 8pm yesterday.
Nationally there were 334 confirmed cases in hospital on Tuesday evening.
The HSE data shows that there were two ICU beds available at UHG and none at Portiuncula Hospital, while there are 12 general beds available at UHG.
Points have risen for 65 of the 69 programmes at NUI Galway this year, with almost half of the courses at the University recording an increase of more than 50 points.
Offers were made to 3,859 prospective students yesterday as part of Round One of the CAO process, and NUI Galway expects another record intake of around 3,500 first year students.
Five programmes saw an increase of more than 80 points this year: Arts with Creative Writing, Arts with Journalism, Computer Science & Information Technology, Mechanical Engineering, and Podiatry.
Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, President of NUI Galway, congratulated the class of 2021, which he said demonstrated ‘remarkable resilience amid the significant challenges’ of the pandemic and its impact on education.
“Our focus in NUI Galway is on safely and sustainably optimising the experience for students, on campus, for the academic year ahead,” said Professor Ó hÓgartaigh.
“The health, wellbeing and safety of our staff, students and the wider Galway community is our top priority.”
The University’s President said that he wants to extend a warm welcome to those students who take up the offer to come to NUI Galway and to learn for themselves the importance that is placed on the values of respect, openness, excellence and sustainability.
“Huge work and effort has gone into planning and preparing for the new academic year and ensuring our campus operates within the public health guidelines and we are asking everyone in our university community to put a renewed emphasis on personal responsibility for the public good.”
Professor Pól Ó Dochartaigh, Deputy President and Registrar of NUI Galway and Chair of the CAO, said that the registration team at NUI Galway is once again doing its utmost to accommodate as many students as possible in what has been a challenging year.
“Just as in 2020, we are pulling out all the stops,” he said.
The Emergency Department at University Hospital Galway has reported that it is extremely busy today.
The Saolta Hospital Group has said this morning that there are a large number of people admitted to the Emergency Department who are without a bed today.
Figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation show that there were 45 patients on trolleys at UHG this morning.
That makes it the second most overcrowded hospital in the country today, only behind UHL where there are a staggering 69 patients without beds.
UHG also has to deal with 25 confirmed cases of COVID-19 at the hospital, the fourth highest level in the country.
In a statement this morning, Saolta said that there is “ongoing pressure” on bed availability at the hospital.
“We regret that patients are currently experiencing long waiting times to be admitted from the ED to an acute bed in the hospital.”
Saolta urged people to only come to the A&E in Galway if they are experiencing a real emergency.
“If your health problem is not an emergency you should contact your GP during normal surgery hours or the Westdoc GP Out of Hours service, in the first instance.”
“We are committed to treating everyone who presents at our ED but we do so strictly in order of medical priority and apologise for the long wait times.”
In line with COVID-19 safety protocols, people attending the ED are asked to do so alone, and wear a face mask at all times.
People will only be allowed a companion to wait with them at the hospital under exceptional circumstances.
Met Eireann has now issued a weather warning for heavy downpours and thunderstorms across Ireland today and tomorrow.
Scattered heavy downpours are expected in some areas today, lasting through the night and into Wednesday.
Localised flooding is also possible where the rain is heaviest, Met Eireann has warned.
The status yellow warning, which covers all of Ireland, is in effect immediately, an will last until midday on Thursday.
In Galway, the worst of the rain and thunderstorms are forecast for tonight and Thursday morning, with the chance of some sunny spells in parts today.
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