St. Patrick’s Boys and Girls Primary School on Lombard Street in Galway city appeared on RTÉ’s news2day programme on Wednesday this week, as winners of last year’s nationwide Innocent Big Grow competition.
Watch below!
HID Global to create over 100 new jobs in Galway with new HQ
HID Global has announced it is on track to open its Centre of Excellence in Galway city this year, which will create over 100 jobs in the coming years.
The company, which currently employs 180 people, will move its operations to the new facility in Mervue Business Park by the end of 2022.
HID Global first established in Tully, Co. Galway in 2006 and it aims to increase its workforce here from 180 to 300 in by the end of 2022.
In Ireland the company is best known for creating the technology for Ireland’s passport card, which allowed people to use a card instead of the traditional passport booklet.
Most recently, the company was chosen by leading aerospace company Avolon to provide its mobile access solution for Avolon sites worldwide.
“HID Global has also set up an Operations and Fulfillment Centre in Shannon in 2019,” said Craig Sandness, Senior Vice President and Head of Secure Issuance and Citizen ID Solutions.
“Our new facility in Galway underscores HID Global’s commitment to steadily expand our operations, R&D, supply chain, customer service, IT, finance, and other business functions to support a growing customer base across EMEA.
“The state-of-the-art facility will serve as a major hub for the production of access and identification-related applications, such as electronic passports and access cards, which represent large and growing segments of HID’s business.”
COVID-19: 38 new cases in Galway and 35 further deaths reported
The Department of Health has reported an additional 1,047 cases of Covid-19 this evening, and 35 further deaths related to the disease.
Twenty-nine of the deaths occurred in February, while six happened in January.
Of the cases reported today, 38 are in Galway, where the 14-day incidence rate now stands at 351.5 cases per 100,000 people.
907 cases have been confirmed in the county over the past two weeks.
Dr. Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, said that no single intervention is perfect at preventing the spread of COVID-19, and that it takes many different individual actions to slow down the spread of the disease.
“Every action you take is another layer of protection between you and the virus – the more layers you have the more protection you have,” said the CMO.
“Public health measures are based on this principle. Keep physical distance from others, wash hands regularly, avoid crowds, wear face coverings and vaccines all provide you with layers of defence against COVID-19.”
Very dangerous conditions on roads and paths expected as temperatures fall to -5 C
Met Éireann has warned of ‘hazardous conditions on roads and paths’ ahead of very cold weather expected over the coming days and into next week.
Temperatures are set to plummet on Sunday and Monday as cold weather which originated in Siberia arrives in Ireland.
The weather experts warned that between Sunday and Wednesday will be very cold with temperatures in low single figures by day, with sharp or severe frosts and icy patches at night.
Showers of sleet or snow will hit eastern counties more than the West early on in the week, but wintry showers in Galway are possible on Wednesday.
Connacht will see very low temperatures of -3 to -5 on Monday and Tuesday night under clear skies, leading to icy roads and paths.
Met Éireann’s advisory, which may become a full weather warning in the coming days, begins on Sunday morning and will remain in place until Wednesday evening.
Tuam has highest COVID rate in Galway for third week
COVID-19 rates have fallen across Galway again this week, with all ten local electoral areas except Conamara North recording a lower incidence rate than was reported last week.
The rate in Tuam LEA has improved significantly since last Thursday, but it remains the area with the highest rate in the county for the third week, with 629.7 cases per 100,000 people in 14 days – or 209 cases confirmed in two weeks.
At the other end of the table, Conamara South now has a 14-day rate of 196.8 cases per 100,000 people after the rate there halved since last week.
The rate also fell in all three local electoral areas in the city – with Galway City Central recording the highest rate despite seeing improvements on the figures released last week.
Conamara North was the only electoral area in the county to see a slight increase in its rate, going from 250.1 to 279.2 cases per 100,000 people.
There were 48 cases confirmed in the area in the last two weeks of January.
At the time the data was taken, the national incidence rate was 455, but this has since fallen to 397.1 as of last night.
Yesterday’s figures show that overall Galway has a 14-day incidence rate of 374.7 cases per 100,000 people. A total of 967 cases have been reported here in the past fortnight.
14-day Covid rates per 100k population | Number of cases (14 days)
- Tuam 629.7 | 209 cases
- Gort – Kinvara 519 | 122 cases
- Galway City East 594.1 | 158 cases
- Galway City Central 441.9 | 118 cases
- Ballinasloe 370 | 104 cases
- Galway City West 319.3 | 81 cases
- Athenry – Oranmore 271.1 | 89 cases
- Conamara South 196.8 | 42 cases
- Loughrea 245.5 | 57 cases
- Conamara North 279.2 | 48 cases
GMIT awards 90 scholarships recognising students’ achievements
Ninety GMIT students have been awarded scholarships in recognition of their academic, personal, sporting, and cultural achievements.
The scholarships were awarded at a virtual ceremony attended by the students, their families, school principals, school guidance counsellors and staff late last month.
The students, who are studying a range of programmes in all five campuses, are from counties in the west, the midlands, Dublin, Wicklow, Waterford, and Cork, and have been studying mainly online since the start of this 2020/21 academic year.
Speaking at the online awards ceremony Dr Orla Flynn, said “One of the highlights of the academic year in GMIT has always been the traditional annual scholarships ceremony, where we welcome our scholarship students, their families, lecturers and school staff to Galway for a very special evening.”
“While we were disappointed that we couldn’t meet everyone in person this year, we wanted to ensure our scholarship recipients were formally recognised for their achievements.
“This year’s scholarship recipients have had to quickly adapt to the new styles of learning that the COVID pandemic has brought into our lives and I have no doubt that they will be among the most resilient and adaptable of our graduates.”
The full list of scholarships awarded is as follows:
- Academic Scholarships
- Access Scholarships
- 1916 Scholarships
- Sara Gibadlo Memorial Scholarship
- Dace Zarina Memorial Scholarship
- Mature Student Access Scholarships
- Uversity Scholarship
- Sports Scholarships – Galway Campuses
- Sports Scholarships – Mayo Campus
- Gaelic Players Association (GPA)
- Women’s Gaelic Players Association (WGPA) Scholarships
- John Costelloe Scholarship
- Galway Wind Park Scholarships
- Flanagan Fittings Scholarship
- Sanctuary Scholarships
- Teagasc Walsh Fellowship
- Dublin Port Company & GMIT PhD Research Scholarship
- GMIT Department of Creative Education & Research Office Masters by Research Scholarship
- GMIT Letterfrack & Research Office Masters by Research Scholarship
- Postgraduate Scholarships
- The Ireland Funds ‘No Mind Left Behind’ Scholarships
Further information on scholarships at GMIT is available on www.gmit.ie/scholarships
Fitzmaurice raises alarm over changes to Community Employment rules
Galway TD Michael Fitzmaurice has said that the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection is trying to change the employment rights of Community Employment (CE) scheme workers.
Speaking in the Dáil, Deputy Fitzmaurice said that Community Employment scheme workers do incredible work, especially in rural areas.
“The work they do for Tidy Towns and making Ireland look better is commendable,” the Independent TD said.
He noted that according to the Scheme’s procedures manual, people over the age of 55 who joined the scheme before July 3, 2017 are entitled to stay on the scheme for up to six years consecutively, if they so wish.
However, the Department is attempting to treat people who joined the scheme under those criteria the same as people who joined under new rules, Deputy Fitzmaurice claimed, forcing them to take a year out after three years, and then reapply to the scheme.
“We now face situations where people who are eligible under the guidelines, the gospel that is given to the CE scheme supervisors, to stay on schemes for six years must take a year out and reapply.”
“The Department cannot have its bible of rules and regulations that everyone adheres to and six months or a year later try to move the goal posts.”
“There are some 19,500 people on the scheme around the country and, unfortunately, about 1,500 to 2,000 vacancies. People adhered to all the regulations as did the supervisors who took them on.”
The Community Employment Scheme is designed to help people who are long term unemployed, or otherwise disadvantaged, get back into work by offering part-time and temporary placements in jobs based within local communities.
The Roscommon-Galway TD noted that CE workers and the schemes they are involved in “play a key role in combating social and rural isolation”.
Deputy Fitzmaurice said that the Department could be leaving itself open to legal challenge if it continues along this path.
The issue was raised during Leaders Questions in the Dáil on Thursday, and Deputy Fitzmaurice asked Tánaiste Leo Varadkar to speak with Minister Humphreys about this issue.
Tánaiste Varadkar said that he would reach out to the Minister, and also praised the “valuable work” done by community employment schemes in the areas of Tidy Towns, Meals on Wheels, community centres, and sports clubs.
“It also provides valuable work experience for people to help them get on a pathway to work, education or training.”
However, he added that there should be “churn and turnover” in the schemes, and that people should not be staying on them for years, as “we need those opportunities to be made available to others and we need people to move on, using their experience of the CE scheme, to mainstream employment or other training and education opportunities”.
NUIG team leading €10m EU project to prepare for future pandemics
NUI Galway is leading a €10 million EU project to help prepare the European Union to deal with any future pandemics.
The PANDEM-2 Project will develop IT systems and processes for improved EU wide responses and management of critical resources such as hospital beds, PPE and vaccines during pandemics.
The two year project has been awarded €9.7 million by the European Union, and will be led by an NUIG drawing from the disciplines of Medicine and Computer Science.
Other members of the project consortium will include European leaders from the health, security, defence, microbiology, communications, information technology and emergency management fields.
Two other Irish companies are also involved, Carr Communications and Pintail Ltd, and PANDEM-2’s Advisory Board membership includes the World Health Organisation (WHO) and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)
Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said that this investment will help us prepare “at a national and European level” for future pandemics.
This project will “harness the learning from COVID-19” to develop new technologies which will improve the EU’s response to future health crises, the Minister added.
“While we are still facing many challenges with COVID-19, it is critical that we also focus on longer term developments for pandemic preparedness, as this project will. I am delighted that Irish research will be central to this work.”
The European Unions was criticised during the early days of the pandemic for not doing enough to coordinate a unified response to the crisis.
This affected multiple areas, with individual countries left scrambling to secure supplies of PPE in frantic bidding wars with other nations.
The continent was also riven by a hodge podge of disparate travel restrictions as different nations adopted different metrics for judging which countries were and were not safe to travel to.
Professor Máire Connolly, College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at NUIG and project co-ordinator on PANDEM-2 said that along with better technological solutions, the project hopes to improve cross-border collaboration.
“The state-of-the-art tools that will be developed by PANDEM-2 have the potential to transform how Europe prepares for future large-scale healthcare crises through improved analysis of surveillance and contact tracing data, innovative pandemic modelling, better resource allocation and training of pandemic managers using simulations across Europe.”
Prof Jim Duggan, School of Computer Science, College of Science and Engineering added “We are very excited to start working on PANDEM-2.
“Our role within the project builds upon our work from PANDEM which involved research on pandemic response and the development of a resource modelling tool, PANDEM-CAP.”
“This project will aid the development of an IT dashboard that will host pandemic-relevant data from across Europe.”
“This data will enable pandemic managers in capacity building and developing operational strategy for cross border pandemic response so that Europe will be as well positioned as possible for any future pandemic that may arise.”
COVID-19: Just 10 ICU patients in Galway hospitals
The number of COVID-19 patients admitted to the ICU in Galway’s hospitals has fallen to 10 in the latest figures, down to less than half the peak figures in January.
As of 8pm on Thursday there were 8 confirmed COVID-19 cases at UHG’s Intensive Care Unit, with another 2 at Portiuncula.
Both hospitals reported one suspected case each in the ICU for which test results were being awaited yesterday evening.
The overall number of patients hospitalised for COVID-19 in Galway has also continued to fall, with just over 50 at the most recent counting.
University Hospital Galway reported 45 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and Portiuncula Hospital had another six.
Nationwide there were 1,239 people admitted to hospital with the disease as of Thursday evening, of whom 183 were in the ICU.
Tony Canavan, CEO of the Saolta Hospital Group which includes UHG and Portiuncula, recently thanked healthcare staff for the incredible level of patient care and working flexibility they have shown during this surge.
Despite improving hospital figures, Galway has continued to have some of the highest levels of new daily cases in the past week.
Over the past two days Galway has reported 96 cases on Wednesday, and 93 on Thursday, which were the second and third highest numbers seen in the country respectively.
Fortunately, more than 7,900 healthcare staff in the west of Ireland have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while approximately 3,000 have been fully vaccinated.
Detached city house has stunning garden
This large detached house originally built in 1954 is located in one of Galway’s most sought after residential locations – and has abundant potential for redevelopment to create a magnificent family home.
Located on the Kingston Road overlooking the Galway Bay Golf Club greenways, the house boasts fantastic views of Galway Bay and the Clare hills.
O’Donnellan & Joyce are offering this property at Duncairn, 19 Kingston Road in Kingston, with an asking price of €650,000.
The house comprises over 180 square metres and comes with approximately 0.12 hectares, and while the property does require full modernisation and refurbishment, the abundance of space on site means it has bags of potential.
Duncairn comes with off-street parking to the front and is encompassed by a large green space and surrounding shrubbery, giving it a spacious and secluded atmosphere.
Kingston Road is one of the most sought after residential locations in Galway, availing of all necessary amenities and it is within close proximity to several popular landmarks.
Within easy access is Joyce’s Supermarket, Gateway Retail Park and Westside Shopping Centre, it is also well-serviced by quality transport links, allowing for easy access to Galway City Centre and its neighbouring suburbs.
The area is also near to several local primary and secondary schools.
One of the main advantages of Kingston Road is that it is within walking distance to several popular outdoor landmarks and activities such as Galway Bay Golf Club, Galway Lawn Tennis Club, Salthill promenade, Blackrock diving tower, McGrath’s field, Silver Strand, Cappagh fields and Barna Woods.
Duncairn offers so much potential for redevelopment to create a magnificent family home with ample space, taking advantage of idyllic scenery in one of Galway City’s most popular residential locations.
To find out more about this fantastic property, visit https://property.odonnjoyce.com/residential/brochure/duncairn-19-kingston-road-kingston-galway-city/4470302
To see more properties in Galway and across the country, be sure to check out: https://property.odonnjoyce.com/residential/ireland/property-for-sale
Appeal lodged against rejection of Briarhill housing plans
The County Council’s rejection of plans to build 44 houses and apartments on the edge of Galway City at Briarhill have been appealed to An Bord Pleanála.
Planning permission was sought by Martin Coyne to build 32 houses and a block of 12 apartments on land at Breanloughan, Briarhill.
The housing estate would consist of one block of apartments, and a mix of two and three bedroom semi-detached houses.
The site of the proposed estate is next to Briarhill National School on the R339 Monivea Road.
An appeal against the county council’s decision has been lodged with An Bord Pleanála, which is due to rule on the case by June 1, 2021.
In refusing planning permission Galway County Council said that the lands in question are not currently zoned for development, and to allow this would be “contrary to proper planning and sustainable development” of the area.
Concerns were also raised about the impact this housing estate would have on traffic levels on the R339, and the existing deficiency in the public sewerage infrastructure in Briarhill.
The council also stated that the “roads dominated layout” of the proposed estate, as well as its “building typologies, scale, and extent” fails to reinforce the character of the Briarhill area, and would detract from the “visual amenity” of the locality.
This was the second time the county council refused permission for development of these lands, after a similar application to build 43 homes was rejected in July 2019.
COVID-19: 93 new Galway cases as Republic passes grim 200,000 cases milestone
Seventy-five more Covid-related deaths were reported by health officials this evening along with a total of 1,318 cases across the Republic, taking the number of confirmed cases here since the start of the pandemic to above 200,000.
Of the deaths reported by the Department of Health this evening, 46 happened in February, 27 in January and two at an earlier date. The youngest person was 34 and the oldest was 100.
Ninety-three of the new cases are in Galway, where the 14-day incidence rate now stands at 374.7 cases per 100,000 people, with 967 cases confirmed in the county over the past fortnight.
Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, said that we know that the over 70s have suffered the greatest burden of mortality and serious illness from COVID-19.
“Ireland is now in a good position; we can now offer highly effective and safe vaccines to this cohort,” he said.
“The superior efficacy demonstrated by the mRNA vaccines authorised for use in Ireland, Pfizer BioNTech and Moderna mean that the mRNA vaccines are the right vaccine to provide the highest level of protection available to those over 70.”
The CMO added that over the coming weeks, we will see many more of our vulnerable loved ones receive their COVID-19 vaccinations.
“This is good news and gives all of us great hope. However, even if you have received your COVID-19 vaccine, you must continue to wash your hands, wear a face covering, maintain a social distance and keep your close contacts to a minimum.
“Until we have all been vaccinated, we must act as though none of us have been vaccinated.”
Govt must outline contingency plan for vaccine rollout to over 70s, says Canney
Galway East TD Seán Canney has called on the Government to immediately outline their contingency plan for the rollout of vaccines to people over the age of 70.
The Independent TD made the call following advice issued by the HSE that people over 70 should get the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines, rather than the AstraZeneca vaccine.
“Protecting our most vulnerable with the most effective vaccines is the ultimate goal,” said Deputy Canney.
“However the continuous lack of clarity on the vaccine rollout is a serious issue, as is the lack of information on projected delivery dates and quantities.
“Now we have more uncertainty.”
Deputy Canney added that the HSE Chief Clinical Officer Dr Colm Henry confirmed the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines afford greater protection for older people.
The Pfizer vaccine will be administered by GPs – but the Galway TD says that ‘we need to know how and when this will commence’.
“We need urgent clarification from the Government and the Minister for Health.
“The Government needs to immediately outline their contingency plan and provide clear and concise information in order to reduce any further anxiety for people awaiting vaccination.
“We also need assurances that there will be no further delays in the vaccine rollout process due to a lack of forward planning by the Government,” he added.
Dragons clash is a “must win” for Connacht after recent losses Friend says
The upcoming away game against the Dragons this Friday is a “must win” for Connacht after the past few weeks Head Coach Andy Friend has said.
Connacht are headed over to Wales to face the Dragons in the Guinness PRO14 at Rodney Field tomorrow, with the match kicking off at 7:35pm.
It will be a welcome trip away from home after the Eagles suffered two successive defeats to Munster and the Ospreys on their home turf at the Sportsground so far this year.
Despite recent losses, Andy Friend remains optimistic about tomorrow’s game, noting that their performance away from home has been solid recently.
Connacht’s last away game was against Leinster at the RDS Arena. In their first match of 2021 Connacht broke a streak to secure their first away victory against Leinster in almost two decades.
The Irish side will also be coming into the game well rested after a week off following the loss to the Ospreys.
“While our home form has been disappointing we’ve had honest reviews of what’s gone wrong and the reaction in training has been good,” Andy Friend said.
“Our away form has been a positive for us this season, so we’ll look to keep that going tomorrow albeit against tough opposition and a tough place to go in Rodney Parade.”
Finlay Bealham and Jack Carty will be hitting a major milestone with Connacht on Friday, as they both line out for the 150th time with the province.
Gavin Thornbury and Paul Boyle will also be marking their 50th cap each for Connacht, while, Oisin Dowling, among the replacements, is in line to make his Connacht debut after recovering from a long-term back injury.
Regarding his team selection Friend added “We’ve a number of players earning significant caps tomorrow so I’d like to congratulate Finlay, Jack, Gavin and Paul on the milestones.
“We’ve also got Oisin Dowling in line for his first appearance which has been long overdue after his back injury, and that’s a testament to him and the medical department.”
“Overall we’ve a pretty healthy squad which is a boost heading into a key part of the season.”
CONNACHT MATCHDAY 23 VS DRAGONS RUGBY
Friday 5th February, Rodney Parade, k/o 7.35pm
Name/Number/Caps (* denotes uncapped)
15. John Porch (30)
14. Peter Sullivan (8)
13. Tom Daly (37)
12. Peter Robb (46)
11. Matt Healy (143)
10. Jack Carty (149)
9. Caolin Blade (121)
1. Denis Buckley (191)
2. Shane Delahunt (89)
3. Finlay Bealham (149)
4. Niall Murray (9)
5. Gavin Thornbury (49)
6. Paul Boyle (49) (C)
7. Conor Oliver (13)
8. Abraham Papali’i (5)
Replacements
16. Jonny Murphy (11)
17. Jordan Duggan (6)
18. Jack Aungier (9)
19. Oisin Dowling *
20. Eoghan Masterson (101)
21. Kieran Marmion (175)
22. Sean O’Brien (Acad) (2)
23. Alex Wootton (12)
image credit: Connacht Rugby/INPHO
COVID-19: Saolta Chief thanks healthcare workers for incredible care and flexibility during recent surge
Tony Canavan, CEO of the Saolta Hospital Group, has thanked healthcare staff in the west for the flexibility they have shown working to keep hospitals operating, and patients receiving care, despite the extremely challenging circumstances of COVID-19.
7,900 healthcare workers in the hospital group have received a first dose of the COVID-19, and 3,000 people have been fully vaccinated he also revealed.
The Saolta University Hospital Group consists of UHG, Merlin Park, and Portiuncula hospitals in Galway, as well as Mayo, Sligo, Roscommon, and Letterkenny University Hospitals.
But even with the growing number of staff vaccinated against COVID-19, Tony Canavan cautioned healthcare staff not to let their guards down, and to continue with current precautions in order to limit the spread of the coronavirus, which has been straining health services.
In the past four to five weeks, hospitals across the west of Ireland have been put under extreme pressure by a surge of hospitalisations for COVID-19 since the Christmas period.
“We’ve seen the number of patients with COVID-19 increase quite significantly, and the rate of increase has been very rapid.”
“Most of our hospitals are managing outbreaks on their sites, and this puts particular pressure back on services, but also back on staff.”
There have been “quite a number” of hospital staff who have themselves been infected with COVID-19 Tony Canavan said, while other staff members have been close contacts of people infected.
He went on to thank staff at all Saolta Hospitals for the “flexibility” they have shown in the past few weeks, ensuring that patients get the best level of care despite the current circumstances.
“But I also want to thank you for the support that you’ve shown to each other in what has been a really difficult time.”
Tony Canavan said that things have seemed to be improving in the past week, but that people still need to be cautious, as the Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan has recently warned that the infection levels in the community remain worryingly high.
There were 96 new cases reported in Galway yesterday, the second highest level in the country behind Dublin.
Galway’s hospitals have begun to see a decline from the recent peak in hospitalisations and ICU admissions due to COVID-19.
The latest figures from the HSE, as of 8pm on Wednesday, show that there were just over 50 confirmed cases in Galway’s hospitals, with 45 at UHG and 8 at Portiuncula.
Of those, 10 patients were in the ICU at University Hospital Galway, while another three were in Portiuncula’s Intensive Care Unit.
“What that means for us is that we must continue to do all that we can in the work place to protect ourselves and to protect each other.”
While outside of work, Tony Canavan urged staff to limit the number of contacts they have as much as possible to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
“We’ve been rolling out the vaccination programme for COVID-19 since just before the start of this year, and so far it’s going well.”
“We have now given a first dose of the vaccination to over 7,900 healthcare workers from across the Saolta Group. Over 3,000 people have received their second dose.”
“We are committed to ensuring that all healthcare within the Saolta Group receive their vaccination as quickly as possible.”
“At the moment that’s dependant on the availability of the vaccine, and we’re being told that there will be increased levels as this month progresses.”
The Saolta Group has been hiring additional staff to handle the growing rollout of the vaccine programme, as well as preparing their clinics so that when the vaccine does become available, the healthcare group will be able to roll it out quickly.
Galway had third highest level of Gardaí injured on duty in 2020
Gardaí in Galway suffered the third highest number of injuries in the line of duty last year.
Figures released to the Irish Times show that Gardaí in the Galway Division suffered 15 injuries as a result of an assault in 2020.
This number was exceeded only by the Laois/Offaly (16) and Waterford (24) divisions.
In total there were 199 injuries suffered by Gardaí on duty last year according to the Irish Times’ reporting.
Of these, 91 were ‘bruising/grazes/or bites’, 38 were ‘sprains or strains’, in 15 incidents officers suffered ‘open wounds”, and 10 officers suffered a ‘closed fracture’.
Gardaí reported the fewest injuries in the Clare, Kildare, and Louth divisions, with just three incidents recorded in each area.
As of December 31, 2020 there were 623 Gardaí stationed in the Galway Division.
These included 504 Garda officers, 89 Sergeants, 23 Inspectors, 6 Superintendents, and 1 Chief Superintendent.
Spectacular Valentine’s Day concert for breast cancer research
A fantastic virtual Valentine’s Day Concert featuring some of the biggest names in Irish music will be hosted by the National Breast Cancer Research Institute.
The charity’s annual Valentine’s Ball has been a highlight of the Galway social scene for many years and one of its major fundraising events.
The fundraiser cannot go ahead as normal this year due to the pandemic, but that won’t stop a range of top artists uniting to celebrate ‘Live, Laugh and Love’.
Among those performing at the event will be Daniel and Majella O’Donnell, Nathan Carter, Sean Keane, Trudi Lalor, Cliona Hagan, Sandy Kelly, The Fahys and Chris Kelly, Mary Byrne and Mike Denver.
Hosted by Marc Roberts and organised by the charity’s Galway fundraising committee, the event promises to be unmissable with each of the artists donating their time to help make a difference for Irish women suffering from breast cancer.
One in 11 Irish women will be diagnosed with breast cancer before 75 years of age with over 3,500 cases diagnosed annually. Monies raised from the concert will go directly to support the breast cancer research team at NUI Galway led by Prof. Michael Kerin.
The concert is free but people are invited to make a donation to the charity during the show or up to two weeks afterwards.
It will be available to view worldwide so make sure to tell your friends and family to log-on from 8pm Valentine’s night by going to: www.ValentinesConcert.ie
Cross Street to remain pedestrianised after changes to city traffic
Cross Street will remain pedestrianised following traffic flow changes which will come into effect on four city centre streets next week.
Galway City Council released a map yesterday outlining the four streets on which traffic will change direction, including Cross Street – which was pedestrianised in July 2020.
But Cllr Owen Hanley has confirmed today that Cross Street will remain pedestrianised after next week, and said that the changes on the street refer only to morning deliveries.
Beginning on Monday 8th, traffic will flow in the opposite direction along Middle Street, Abbeygate Street Lower, Cross Street and Flood Street.
Galway City Council says the changes will reduce the volume of traffic along Middle Street and the adjoining sections of Abbeygate Street Lower and Cross Street Lower.
This will support safer pedestrian and cyclist access, support local businesses, and give more space for social distancing.
Galway based software company Clubforce to double its workforce
The Galway based sports software company Clubforce plans to double the size of its workforce with the creation of 20 new jobs following a multi-million investment.
The expanded staff of 40 employees will be spread across their offices in Galway and the United Kingdom.
Recently Clubforce raised a €2.5 million investment in the company, which it plans to use to further expand the development of its club management software into a full sports participation system.
Warren Healy, founder and CEO of Clubforce, said “Sports organisations were already feeling a certain level of strain before the pandemic struck.”
“Grassroots sports relies heavily on volunteers, who tend to be time-poor and the pandemic has made the role far more challenging. Our plan is to provide these volunteers with a significant number of additional tools to simply make their roles easier.
“We know that volunteer tasks are an increasing challenge and we’re helping sports clubs to solve these challenges. The volunteers are the fulcrum around which everything else rotates in amateur sports.”
Clubforce is a software solution available on mobile and desktop which enables sports bodies to efficiently manage data, communications and funds and to collaborate on any aspect of sports participation.
The recent round of fundraising for the company was driven by CFO Carole Neylon, who said the additional investment will enable them to further expand beyond their Galway base, and bring participation management to the core of their product.
“While the product will be expanding significantly in its reach, the volunteer in these sports organisations will always be core to all of the product development.”
“Demand across the country, and overseas, has gone through the roof in recent months because of good marketing, good product and the effects of the pandemic.”
“The investment and ongoing recruitment drive will give us everything we need to develop a world class product for our loyal and increasing customer base”.
COVID-19: Hospital numbers remain steady in Galway
The overall number of people with COVID-19 in Galway hospitals has remained relatively steady this week, while the confirmed cases in ICU has fallen by 3 since Tuesday.
At 8pm yesterday evening there was a total of 45 confirmed Covid cases at University Hospital Galway and eight at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe.
Of those at UHG diagnosed with the disease, ten are in ICU – a decrease of three since Tuesday evening.
Meanwhile at Portiuncula, there are still three patients with Covid in ICU.
There were just two additional hospitalisations at UHG yesterday and one at Portiuncula, according to the latest HSE data released this morning.
Across the state, 1,308 people with Covid-19 are in hospital, of whom 188 are in ICU as of this morning.