Aoife Doherty delves into the archives to bring you the news and images from yesteryear.
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June 14, 1975
Heat wave brings Donegal water famine fears
THE SUNSHINE and dry weather that has delighted Donegal over the recent weeks is also leading to an alarming situation in the supply of water to many parts of the county.
Nothing like the water scarcity of today has ever before been experienced in Donegal and County Council officials are making special arrangements that will seek to make the most of the supply now available. Homes, industry, farms will all be affected.
Water is to be cut off at night in most areas and this is but the beginning of restrictions of supplies. Should the position worsen – and indications are that it will – the interruptions in supply will be considerably extended. 20,000 people are being affected by cuts now and this will grow later.
The water situation is so very serious that everyone in the county should be made aware of it, said Donegal County Manager Mr. J. D. Williams at a press conference called for Lifford on Tuesday in an effort to alert people to the urgent need for limiting their use of water.
Mr. Williams said that if they did nothing about the deteriorating situation and ignored it, it could lead to considerable hardship. They wanted the full cooperation of the people in conserving water so that hardship would be minimised.
Particularly bad is the south west where the May rainfall was very low indeed. Only about one-eighth of an inch fell at Glencolmcille for the entire month. Lake levels are falling and stream intakes are dropping. The spring sources at Glencolmcille and other areas are badly hit by the low rainfall since March and these take a long time to recover.
In this situation Donegal was facing its most critical ever period of water shortage. There had been a previous occasion in 1959 when a water shortage arose but this had come later in the season with more hope then of a better recovery.
The worst on record was in 1941 but at that time not anything like the same numbers of people had a piped water supply.
‘Letterkenny’s new swings are noisy’ – complaints at council
COMPLAINTS were voiced at Letterkenny Urban Council about the noise created by the installation of children’s swings on a piece of open ground in the centre of a local estate.
Mrs. Bernadette McKeague wrote that the swings were used all day from 8.30am to 11.30pm and on occasions at 2am.
The swings were a source of danger on ground that had not been properly prepared for them. She pointed out that there was “no sign here of Letterkenny looking forward to providing swings in a confined space which they chose to call a playground.”
A tape recording left by Mr. Charles McGinley, who also has a house built emitted sounds of children noisily playing and singing.
One of the members said to switch it off; it was too noisy.
Cllr Tony Gallagher said he thought this ridiculous. The Council had done its best in trying to provide these facilities.
They had been asked by different organisations to do something for the young people and they did what they thought best for the recreation of the children. It was too bad to have this reaction. He himself thought they should have a closing time.
Cllr Anthony Halpin said the swings had been an outstanding success and it was the first time the Council had done something that got to the children’s hearts. They should seek to spread to other areas in the town.
The children were enjoying themselves tremendously, and they should have more swings at Gartan Avenue and Oldtown.
Senator Bernard McGlinchey, Chairman, said the Co. Manager was negotiating for the purchase of the remainder of the field at Oldtown. There had been some criticism of the location of the swings, but another opinion was that they were wonderful and the parents could see if the children were in danger. They had only complaints from three people and they should continue until a large number were opposed.
There would be a heavy demand until the children got used to them. He proposed they have the swings remain until a majority wished them moved.
Brings title to Donegal
Eddie McCarron, of Letterkenny Technical School, became the first Donegal schoolboy to win an Irish Schools title when on Sunday at Belfield, Dublin he won the Irish 5,000m Championship.
He is a son of Mr. and Mrs. Ed. McCarron, MacMahon Villas, Letterkenny and a brother, well known in athletics, is Noel.
June 16, 2000
Donegal welcomes Chernobyl children
A GROUP of children from Chernobyl will be arriving over the next couple of weeks and staying with families in Donegal Town and Killybegs
The first flights of Chernobyl children coming to Ireland through the ‘Summer Rest and Recuperation Programme’ organised by the Chernobyl Children’s Project have been arriving at Shannon Airport.
Adi Roche, Executive Director of the Chernobyl Children’s Project, said that more than 1,300 children are coming to Ireland over the next couple of weeks to stay with more than 1,000 different Irish host families.
“The first flights of children are arriving in Ireland in the week that the Ukrainian Government announced the closure of the Chernobyl nuclear power station by the end of the year.
A delighted Adi Roche welcomed this news.
“This announcement is the culmination of 14 years of difficult lobbying for the closure of the reactor. We can all take heart that sometimes politicians do listen:’ she said.
Teachers have to bring water to Glenmaquin school
A PRIMARY school just six miles from Europe’s fastest growing town has no proper water supply, and in times of drought, the teachers have to supply drinking water in bottles for the pupils.
Glenmaquin National School on the main Convoy to Letterkenny road, does have a water supply piped from a nearby well, but when the weather is dry so is the well.
School principal Violet Thorburn and teacher, Nicholas Griffith described the situation as “crazy in the year 2000”. The teachers bring the water to school in bottles everyday.
While they have become accustomed to being water carriers, as well as teachers, they have had enough and want something done about the situation.
“If the well dries up we have no running water at all. We have thirty-two children attending our school,” Ms Thorburn said.
A number of years ago the well did run dry but the school avoided having to close after a local farmer brought water from a nearby river in a slurry tank and refilled the well. Ms Thorburn said that certainly could not happen again.
Councillors from the local area have been invited to attend a meeting in the school on Wednesday next, organised by the Board of Management.
Sod turned for new tourist office
WORK on the construction of the new Tourist Information Centre on the outskirts of Letterkenny is expected to get underway before the end of this year, a spokesman for North West Tourism confirmed this week.
The new centre is to be developed on a site at Port Bridge, adjacent to the proposed new Neil T Blaney link road. Speaking at a ceremony to mark the turning of the first sod at the new site on Thursday evening last Dr. James McDaid, Minister for Tourism. Sport and Recreation said that the new facility will prove to be a very important facility for visitors.
“It will be a while before it opens its doors for business, but I know that when it does it will demonstrate all the skill, the empathy and commitment that it did while operating from its original premises. Visitors will not be disappointed,” Dr McDaid said.
The new tourism office is to be constructed a few hundred metres away from the existing facility at Port Road and is to be developed with grant assistance of £338,377.
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