Articles in the General News Category

HSA WILL MONITOR COMPLIANCE WITH COVID-19 SAFETY MEASURES Inspectors from the Health and Safety Authority will be able to shut down workplaces that do not comply with new safety measures aimed at preventing the spread of Covid-19. Launching the government’s Return to Work Safely Protocol on Saturday (see page 16), the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys TD said handshakes would be banned and temperature testing will be carried out in line with public health advice. Workers will not be allowed to share pens, bottles or cups under the ...

The death has occurred of Mr Joe Gavin, who served as Monaghan Co Council’s Co Manager for almost 23 years and played an influential role in advancing capital developments and acquisition projects that contributed to the county’s social and economic development. Mr Gavin passed away at the Drumbear Lodge nursing home in Monaghan Town. He was predeceased by his wife Maura and brother Eddie. He is survived by daughters Anne Marie, Catherine, Aileen and Ciara; sons-in-law J J, Declan, Vinnie and Gerard; grandchildren; brother Kieran, Moate; brothers-in-law; sisters-in-law; nephews and ...

Surveying and design works for the National Broadband Plan (NBP) rollout got underway in Co Monaghan this week. National Broadband Ireland (NBI) are the company undertaking the fibre network roll-out to enable high speed internet connectivity for 537,000 premises across the country. NBI advised the public that contractors will be on the ground, both inspecting and recording pictures of infrastructure such as poles, cables and underground ducts. “The teams have been fully trained in physical distancing practices, hygiene, appropriate use of personal protective equipment and how to engage with the ...

• Department says no problems with supply of specialist meats for Ramadan Michael Fisher A recent post on social media carried a plea said to come from a resident of St Patrick’s Accommodation Centre in Monaghan. It stated that: “I am living in depression everyday in St Patrick’s Direct Provision Centre in County Monaghan for over 5 years with my husband and two kids. We had a meeting with the manager about our weekly meals for Ramadan because of our fasting times and she was very…aggressive to our request for meals. ...

Monaghan Integrated Development (MID) is offering a range of supports for those who are affected by the Covid crisis. For community groups they are offering help with funding applications. Applying for funding these days can be an onerous task for smaller community groups. Filling application forms has become more complex and there are many more regulations to be adhered to. The Irish Government has recently announced two new funding opportunities for community groups. The ‘COVID-19 Stability Fund’ supports groups whose trading and/or fundraising income has dropped significantly. The ‘Philanthropy…

Michael Fisher A Monaghan man based in California is playing a leading role in a company that has helped to develop swabs for carrying out tests for coronavirus. In the space of two weeks, Emyvale native Finbarr Watterson helped his start-up company Origin switch production from 3D printers to Covid-19 test kits. With restrictions in place across the world designed to limit the spread of the virus, many businesses decided to pitch in along with academics to examine how they could help in the fight. Origin was founded in 2015 ...

The ongoing restrictions caused by Covid-19 mean the organisers of the annual Famine Walk in Louisburgh, Co. Mayo have been forced to postpone the iconic event. The walk, organised by peace and justice organisation Afri, has been a popular annual event attended by 100s each year since 1988. Despite the disappointment, organisers intend marking the spirit of the event through a free ‘Virtual Famine Walk’ event featuring conversation and music that will be livestreamed online on Saturday, May 16 at 7pm. The host for the event is Cootehill author, campaigner ...

Comment One of the many legacies of the Covid-19 pandemic will be a rethinking of how we organise in the future what we were not that long ago accustomed to calling “public events”: occasions of celebration, commemoration or reflection of a significant contemporary or historical happening involving the gathering together of people in significant numbers. We are being conditioned to anticipate a “new normal” when the shadow of the virus lifts from the globe, and one of the ways in which this new normality is likely to manifest is our approach ...

Derek Duffy, 2nd from right, Director of the Cú Chulain Blood Bikes, accepting a donation for the group from the Monaghan Mens Shed and the Friends of Rossmore group. The money will go towards the running costs of the Cú Chulain Blood Bikes, which have been helping to transport items for the HSE in the North East Region. Included in the photo are (L-R) Anthony Molloy, Friends of Rossmore, Derek Duffy, Cú Chulain Blood Bikes, Jim Irvine, Chairman, Monaghan Mens Shed and Gerry Murdock, Vice-Chairman, Friends of Rossmore and Monaghan ...

Archbishop of Armagh Most Reverend John McDowell and Archbishop of Dublin Most Reverend Dr Michael Jackson (both former Bishops of Clogher) have in a joint statement this week commended the Church of Ireland community on its response to the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic. The statement is as follows: Over the past few days An Taoiseach, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the devolved administration in Northern Ireland have each published some form of “road map” to guide us out of the current severe restrictions which had ...