RNLI on rescue duty in Bridgetown following the Christmas Day flooding in the area. (File Picture).
By Dan Walsh
Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works (OPW) Patrick O’Donovan has announced €157,770 of funding to provide demountable flood gates and barriers to affected properties of the Christmas Day flooding in Bridgetown.
Cathaoirleach of Rosslare Municipal District Council Cllr Lisa McDonald told WexfordLocal.com; “Having consistently raised the need for flood defences to be put in place since the events of last Christmas, I welcome the announcement today. We need to do all we can to prevent this happening again.”
At the time WexfordLocal.com visited Bridgetown and wrote; “It was heartbreaking to walk through the village of Bridgetown and observe people’s possessions either sitting outside their homes or piled high on lorry-sized skips awaiting collection having been devastated by the torrential Christmas Day rainfall that created flooding across large parts of Co. Wexford.”
“I would be afraid of this happening again,” said one elderly resident, and another asked; “Could it be possible that this is the beginning of things to come at regular intervals?”
And this was two days after the worst weather event to hit south Wexford in living memory. Cllr Jim Codd said; “The people are devastated here. Their Christmas ruined. People trapped in submerged car parks.”
The seagulls watching the kiddies train on the sea front at Courtown this evening. Could it be the last time the train runs along this track?
By Dan Walsh at Council Meeting and Courtown Harbour
There was an element of surprise at today’s monthly meeting of Gorey-Kilmuckridge Municipal District Council when it was strongly suggested that the popular seaside train that has been part of the summer season at Courtown Harbour for many years would be discontinued!
Cllr Mary Farrell asked about the removal of the train from Courtown, and District Manager, Philip Knight told the meeting that the train is “a mechanically propelled vehicle” and should not be used on the footpaths as it created a danger to people using the facilities. He had complaints and he was adamant that the train be derailed with immediate effect. He also alleged that “the new plaza is not designed to carry the train.”
Cllr Joe Sullivan questioned the halting of the train and said he was in Courtown two or three times yesterday and it was running all day! He wanted to know who was responsible and he was told to call the guards!
Director of Services Liz Hore said correspondence had been sent to the owner of the train and called for a pause to give the owner the chance to respond!
After the meeting this reporter travelled to sun-soaked Courtown where the train was operational – tiny little happy kids having the time of their life – just a few people around the seaside front area in question and, yes, ‘the guards’ did witness the scene which appeared tranquil and orderly.
The train has been part of Courtown for many years and is operated by a local family fun adventure and holiday experience company with an impeccable record in safety and a vital cog in the wheel of summer in Courtown!
This is a story that is going to get legs. Is the Council acting above its station? Will they cover their tracks? Or will the train face into the dark tunnel with no light at the end?
Three young people onboard a four-metre RIB that suffered engine failure and was drifting on the tide approximately one mile south of the Great Saltee Island were rescued by Kilmore Quay RNLI last night.
The volunteer crew were requested to launch their all-weather Tamar class lifeboat, Killarney, by the Irish Coast Guard at 9pm. Weather conditions at the time were calm.
When the lifeboat, under Coxswain Philip Walsh with six crew members onboard, arrived on scene, the crew checked that everyone on board the RIB was safe and well before assessing the situation. It was decided to establish a towline and transfer those on board to the lifeboat.
With a towline secured and the crew of the RIB safely aboard, the lifeboat was soon underway back to Kilmore Quay, arriving back at the harbour at 10.07pm.
Speaking following the call out, John Grace, Kilmore Quay RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager said: “Thankfully there was a positive outcome to this evening’s call out. With such good weather more people are spending more time on the water making it the charity’s busiest time of year. Even the best maintained equipment can encounter problems, so it is important to always be prepared for when it does happen. We would urge anyone heading out to sea to tell someone where you are going and when you will be back, carry a reliable means of communication, VHF or a mobile phone in a waterproof case in case you need to call for help and always wear a lifejacket.”
Revenue officers seized approximately 77kgs of herbal cannabis at Rosslare Europort yesterday (Monday) as a result of routine profiling and with the assistance of An Garda Síochána.
The drugs, with an estimated value of more than €1.5 million, were discovered when Revenue officers searched an unaccompanied trailer that had arrived on a ferry from Cherbourg, France.
Investigations are ongoing.
These routine operations are part of Revenue’s ongoing work targeting drug smuggling. If businesses, or members of the public, have any information, they can contact Revenue in confidence on Confidential Phone Number 1800 295 295.
THE RIGHT HONOURABLE PENNY MORDAUNT challenging for the leadership of the Tory Party and could be the next UK Prime Minister who has family roots in North Wexford. SOURCE; Public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. (UK).
By Dan Walsh in Boolavogue
Not since the days of Fr. John Murphy has there been so much excitement in the Boolavogue area after it was disclosed in the national media at the weekend that Penny Mordaunt, tipped by many to be the next Tory leader and likely Prime Minister of the United Kingdom as successor to Boris Johnson has strong family roots in north Wexford.
Ms Mordaunt, (49), born in Torquay, who is MP for Portsmouth North, has held a number of government posts under Boris Johnson and Theresa May, including Defence Secretary, Paymaster General, Trade Minister, and the Women and Equalities and International Development portfolios.
She is a niece of Henry Mordaunt, who maintains the family’s genealogy website. Henry traces their family roots back to Denis and Mary Mordaunt, born in north Co Wexford in the late 18th century.
The family were tenant farmers on land in Ballintlea, (carved as ‘Ballinaclay’ on the family memorial in Boolavogue graveyard) near Gorey, throughout the 19th century and in north Wexford.
Denis Mordaunt (1783-1868) was baptised in the parish of Kilanerin, near Gorey. He married Mary Byrne (1791-1851) in Avoca, Co Wicklow, in 1813, and held 30 acres in Ballinaclay, and may also have held land at Clone, near Monamolin. He died in 1868 and was buried in Boolavogue.
One of his younger children, Edward Mordaunt (1831-1917), married Bridget Crowe (1841-1921) in Litter Parish (Kilmuckridge) in 1863. They lived on 86 acres at Cullentra until he was evicted in 1886 for non-payment of rent and was jailed for his role in the ‘Land War.’
Part of the memorial inscription reads; “To the memory of Edward Mordaunt, Monamolin, of Land League fame, who was a fearless soldier in the land wars of the 1880s after suffering a term of imprisonment. Died February 6th 1917, aged 85 years.”
The house was destroyed by fire, and Edward and his family later lived in Court Ballyedmond, Monamolin, where he was a farmer and shopkeeper. He died in 1917, and he was buried in Boolavogue, alongside his father and older brothers.
Edward’s son Patrick Mordaunt (1874-1914) was baptised in Monamolin and married Bridget Plunkett (1873-1957) in Wexford in 1898. He enlisted in a cavalry regiment and the family moved to Canterbury.
The Mordaunt family memorials in Boolavogue cemetery.
Earlier today, I visited Boolavogue graveyard and observed the well-kept memorials that are testament to the Mordaunt family, and should Penny aspire to lead the United Kingdom as Prime Minister the footfall will increase and, perhaps, she may be invited to come and visit!
The National 1798 Rebellion Centre presents an interesting event entitled ‘A Shared History; Independence in India and Ireland’, featuring historian John Dorney in conversation with Indian Ambassador Akhilesh Mishra taking place in the Presentation Centre, Enniscorthy, next Friday at 7pm. It is part of the 2022 Summer Series.
2021 marked 100 years of Irish independence and this year sees India celebrate 75 years of independence. “We are honoured to welcome the Indian Ambassador to Ireland, His Excellency, Akhilesh Mishra to Enniscorthy for a conversation on rebellion and independence in our two nations. He will explore the influence of Irish independence on the freedom movement in India during the first half of the 20th century, which led to Indian independence,” said Mico Hassett, Manager of the Centre.
Ambassador Akhilesh Mishra, who arrived in Dublin in October, 2021, belongs to the Indian Foreign Service and has over three decades of rich experience in the entire gamut of Indian diplomacy, covering political, security and geo-strategic affairs; economic and commercial, investment and technology issues; education, research and innovation; cultural and soft power engagements; Indian Diaspora and India’s development partnership with other countries.
John Dorney is an independent historian and chief editor and writer of the Irish Story website. A Dubliner, he studied history and politics in University College Dublin and completed a Masters’ Thesis on the 16th century Irish chieftain Florence McCarthy entitled, Florence MacCarthy and the conquest of Gaelic Munster, 1560-1640. In 2010, he completed a Masters’ in Journalism and media studies at Griffith College Dublin.
After an intermission, the talk will be followed by a concert of Indian classical music performed by Irish sitar player, Dara O’Brien and Indian tabla player, Debajyoti Sanyal. Both are world-renowned musicians and educators.
The public is invited to join in for an evening of history and culture, shared between the independent people of Ireland and India.
Gardaí are investigating a fatal road traffic collision that occurred in Rosslare Harbour, at approximately 2.20pm yesterday (Sunday) afternoon.
Gardaí and emergency services were alerted to a single vehicle collision involving a motor car in Rosslare Harbour.
The driver of the car and sole occupant, a man in his early 60s was pronounced dead at the scene and taken to Wexford General Hospital where a post-mortem will take place later.
A technical examination of the scene was conducted by Garda Forensic Collision Investigators and the road was closed and has since reopened.
Anyone with information on the collision can contact Wexford Garda Station on 053 916 5200, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.
These guys moo’d that that they didn’t care who won the All-Ireland, but they are concerned that Minister Eamonn Ryan wants to remove them from their natural ‘Green’ environment. “We share with udders, but the message hasn’t got through through that green begins with grass and we can convert it to milk and cream,” they said:.
By Dan Walsh at Killinick
It was a quite mid-July Sunday in the WexfordLocal.com newsroom. News stories were scarce. However, Wexford Fire Service successfully controlled a small gorse fire at Ballyboggan, close to the River Slaney at Ferrycarrig, which was noticed shortly after 2.30pm.
The ‘experts’ told us not to walk the dog because ‘the feet would burn off him/her’ – your pet would be miniature in a few hours even if he was a Great Dane in the morning (that’s a little humour for those who take the world seriously!) in the 24 degrees Celsius across Wexford this afternoon. Since I don’t own a dog, absolution on all counts!
Didn’t go to the beach because I can’t stand the bitching about poor traffic management, the stench from the toilets, and the pets left inside abandoned cars – but I can appreciate the concerns and they are genuine.
Instead, I ended up in the beautiful rural landscape of the Killinick area in south Wexford – and I watched the Big Match on the telly. So, it was leisure on a Sunday – as it should be for all of us.
And then I came across a field of wonderful cattle taking advantage of the fresh pasture and the soaring temperatures and they all looked happy and enjoying themselves in a natural habitat, but I heard rumblings about their future, and I reviewed the news of the day on arrival home. The following is the latest: The Climate Change Advisory Council has recommended carbon cuts of 22% to 30% of from the agricultural sector.
Green Party Minister Eamonn Ryan was asked if he was confident that he could persuade his coalition partners to agree a 30% cut. He replied; “I am confident we will get an agreement.”
Minister Ryan said some measures envisaged for agriculture will involve reducing the number of animals. “Some of the measures would increase income to Irish farming but would also see a reduction in animal numbers,” he concluded.
Outgoing Chairman of Wexford Ógra Fianna Fáil, Ruairi Ryan, was re-elected at the annual general meeting held in Riverside Park Hotel, Enniscorthy, last Friday while a new board was elected to support him and run the organisation.
Mr Ryan thanked the previous board for their hard work the past year and expressed interest in working with the new board and members over the next year.
RUAIRI RYAN returned as Chair of Wexford Ógra Fianna Fáil at agm.
“I would like to thank everybody for returning me as chair. We’ve accomplished a lot over the past couple of months since I took over and I want to continue this growth. One thing I wanted to focus on was charity and working with the local communities of Wexford,” said Mr Ryan, who added; “I think we have done very well in that regard with such things as our Ukraine fundraiser as well as our many other events. This unit has so much potential and I want to help us achieve that. I’d like to give particular thanks to Minister Browne for chairing this as one of Ógra’s strongest supporters.”
The meeting was chaired by Minister James Browne while Cllrs Barbara-Anne Murphy and Andrew Bolger were also in attendance.
The Wexford Ógra Fianna Fáil team for 2022-‘23 is as follows; Chairman, Ruairi Ryan; Vice-Chair, Niall Sinnott; Secretary, Sean O’Brien; Treasurers, Conor Brennan and Rory Cassidy; PRO, Michael Roche; Events and Campaigns Officer, Aderinsayo Adeji; Membership Officer, Ian Murphy; OCM’s, Aoibhlinn Ryan and Thomas Rodgers.
For anyone wishing to get involved email – wexfordografiannafail@gmail.com.
Presentation ceremony for Pride of Place runner-up award presented by Cllr Donal Kenny, Cathaoirleach, Gorey-Kilmuckridge Municipal District Council to Liam Nolan on behalf of Monageer Parish Grotto Group at the Grotto and Sensory Garden this morning.
By Dan Walsh at Monageer
The industrious community-based Monageer Parish Grotto Group gathered for the usual Saturday morning maintenance session today, however, it turned out to be a celebratory occasion with the official presentation of the runner-up Pride of Place award won in 2021.
Cllr Donal Kenny, Cathaoirleach of Gorey-Kilmuckridge Municipal District Council, was on hand to congratulate and present the inscribed glass award to Liam Nolan, secretary, on behalf of the group members. Also present was Very Rev. Fr. William Cosgrave, parish priest,
Cllr Kenny praised Michael Sweeney and recalled the good work he had done in Craanford. “Michael was a big help to us in Craanford and he will stay with you to the top! These things don’t happen by accident. It needs a lot of work from people on the ground. The more you do the more you have to do. Best of luck for more success in the future.”
Cllr Pip Breen was district Cathaoirleach when Monageer were announced runners-up in the 32-county ‘Grotto and Sensory Garden’ section at the awards night in Killarney in 2022, but due to the Covid-19 regulations the official presentation awaited until now.
“Great credit to the committee and all involved for the wonderful work that you do, and continue to do,” said Cllr Breen. Also, in attendance and lending support was Cllr Willie Kavanagh.
Liam Nolan echoed the thoughts of previous speakers and acknowledged the support of Wexford County Council and Michael Sweeney on this project. “It’s unbelievable the amount of work that goes in behind the scenes, trying to get the application right, then following up with an interview ‘which was a zoom’ call, he recalled.
Mr Nolan continued; “This was a 32-county competition and to come second was a major achievement. It’s a pity weren’t there on the night – it had to be postponed a number of times because of Covid-19, but it was broadcast – we were listening in, and it was great to hear us (Monageer) being called out as runners-up.”
Mr Nolan became emotional when he acknowledged the amount of work that occurred on the site in ‘the six weeks when he was away’. “Volunteerism and the spirit is out there, and it is in Monageer in spades,” and he thanked everyone including Wexford County Council and “all who attended here today.”
Michael Sweeney described Wexford County Council’s involvement as ‘a partnership’. “You turned an old quarry into a marvellous facility for public use,” he concluded.
WexfordLocal.com 