Ocean FM News Reports

Thousands of homes and businesses remain without power this morning after Storm Darragh hit Ireland. Outages are still present around the country, but the ESB says the north-west, south-east and the midlands are the worst affected. At the peak of the storm, as many as 400 thousand customers were without power over the weekend. ESB Networks Regional Manager Brian Tapley, says their crews have been...

It's hoped that more will be done to protect rural banking services in Fermanagh. A number of branches have been forced to close their doors in recent times with many feeling it's a move towards a cashless society. The lack of such services is said to be impacting several sectors, most notably those in agriculture. Fermanagh- South Tyrone MLA, Jemma Dolan says its vital that rural communities have...

Across the North West the respective Local Authorities are gearing up for what could potentially be a busy weekend. Donegal County Council workers have pre-deployed sandbags in a number of high risk areas and further sandbags are ready to be deployed if required. However the Council say that services will only be deployed during the period of the red warning where there immediate threat to life. T...

A Status Red wind warning will come into effect for the Counties of Donegal, Sligo and Leitrim later tonight.   The warning has been issued for seven counties as Storm Darragh prepares to make landfall.   A status orange wind warning has been issued for Munster and Connacht from 8 o'clock this evening, and a similar alert has been issued for the rest of the country from 10pm.   Whil...

A recent sheep kill in Sligo has reignited calls for tighter dog control laws to be implemented. A number of sheep were injured and killed after the dog attack took place. Former IFA National Sheep Chairman, Kevin Comiskey, highlighted that responsibility ultimately lies with dog owners. Mr Comiskey says more needs to be done to tackle the issue:

Sligo County Council have given full support in solidarity with Leitrim County Council in relation to a national ban on gold mining. There have been numerous campaigns within Leitrim in opposition to gold mining in the region. Sligo Labour Cllr Nessa Cosgrove urged to council to contact the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications, notifying them of their stance. Cllr Cosgrove says sh...

A Midlands-North West MEP is calling upon the Taoiseach to declare in opposition to the Mercosur agreement being signed in the EU. President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen is currently in South America to sign off on the trade agreement. The deal will have a heavy impact on Irish farmers with the sector poised to lose out on millions, leading to protests taking place this weekend...

Met Eireann's upgraded its wind weather warning to Red for the northwest. It comes into effect at 11pm for Donegal, Leitrim and Sligo. The warning will be effective for a number of hours as Storm Darragh bears down on the country. The entire country is subject to an Orange wind warning for the storm A status yellow wind warning comes into effect for the entire country at 3pm this afternoon. Cathal...

A Sligo Cllr has sought for an update on the flooding that affected many homes during Storm Bert, ahead of another impending Storm. Storm Darragh is to hit the North West today, with a red weather warning being in from tonight until tomorrow morning. Ballymote-Tubbercurry Fine Gael Cllr Dara Mulvey highlighted that the public shouldn’t have to foot the bill themselves for any work that needs doing...

A Donegal teacher has shared their thoughts on the impact that artificial intelligence is having on the leaving cert curriculum. The tool can currently be used when preparing research projects worth at least 40 per cent in certain subjects. However students have to quote or reference any use of artificial intelligence in their work. VP of the ASTI, Padraig Curley, has questioned the inequality of...

A Sligo based Fine Gael TD says Party leader, Sinon Harris has been provided with a clear mandate in relation to the formation of the next government.   Deputy Frank Feighan says the party's preference is to form a government with Fianna Fail along with additional support from independents or a smaller party. Deputy Feighan who retained his seat in the Sligo Leitrim Constituency says if Fine...

Donegal County Council’s budget meeting was adjourned yesterday following the failure to accept a proposed increase in commercial rates. A rise of almost five percent was rejected unanimously by the councillors. The budget allocates fund to be used within the county on developments such as housing, roads, and major tourism projects. Cathaoirleach Niamh Kennedy says the increase could not be accept...

Further support has been given to the upkeep and maintenance of Sligo graveyards and burial grounds. An additional €75,000 in funding has been allocated for Sligo County Council to target such projects. It's understood that the supports will be aimed towards being spread out over four or five graveyards per year. Local Cllr Liam Brennan says that many areas will benefit from the developments over...

The new masterplan has been issued for the final phase of development at Cleveragh Regional Park. The development will include a skate park, pump track, learn to cycle facility, car parking, basketball courts, and a multi-use games area. It will now continue to progress through the planning process and detail design stages in 2025. Sligo-Drumcliffe Fine Gael Cllr Thomas Walsh welcomed the project...

Sligo County Council will be hearing calls today for a new Regional Veterinary Lab to be built as soon as possible. Two new labs are to be built in Sligo and Kilkenny, but as it stands planning permission will be applied for separately, with Kilkenny being first. Fianna Fail Cllrs Donal Gilroy and Liam Brennan are requesting that both builds be processed at the same time, to limit any delays. Cllr...

A website has been launched by the Irish Red Cross for the Creeslough Community Grant Scheme. The closing date for applications is January 31st, and gives community groups an opportunity to apply for funding. There is a balance of €165,000 that will be distributed with the intention of supporting members within the area following the tragedy in October 2022. Majella McFadden, Community Links Manag...

The recently re-elected Donegal Minister for Agriculture has announced almost €20 million in payments under the Beef Welfare Scheme 2024. Just over 23,000 farmers are to benefit nationwide, as the scheme aims to efficiency and health on suckler farms. The payments are to be processed in the coming days into farmers bank accounts. Minister Charlie McConalogue says it’s an important time of year to...

There are further hopes for the introduction of a fit for purpose bus for cancer patients travelling from Sligo to Galway.   The current bus is currently without a toilet which has leaves passengers with no option but to ask the driver to stop at service stations along the route.   The issue became a main talking point prior to the General Election with many pointing the blame at the gov...

It's been confirmed that the new, long-awaited 26 acute beds at St John's Hospital in Sligo will open by the end of the month. Concerns had previously been expressed over the delay to the project. This, coupled with the withdrawal of the contractor awarded tender for the construction of a 42-bed extension for Sligo University Hospital led to fears for further strain on the health service. Local Fi...

A local IFA representative has responded to a recent report from the EPA that showed low farm inspection rates in Sligo. Sligo County Council is one of six local authorities to have failed to achieve a Strong or Excellent score in 10 or more of the 20 National Enforcement Priorities. However it has been stated that water quality is of a good standard on farms within the county. Sligo IFA Chair Mic...

Talk that Mary Lou McDonald will step down as leader of Sinn Féin has been quashed locally. It was reported following the weekend's election that Deputy McDonald was questioning her future. However, she has been in contact with both the Social Democrats and Labour in recent days following the results in the general election in the hopes of forming a government. While the numbers are there for Fian...

Donegal County Councillors are meeting today to finalise the budget for the upcoming year. Today will also outline what the local authority expects to spend and receive within each service area for 2025. The funding will be spent on the likes of housing, roads and major tourism projects in county Donegal. Councillors are expected to pass the Budget at some stage this afternoon. One of those, Catha...

Sligo Rovers have confirmed the signing of Jad Hakiki.   The 20-year-old attacker after making 12 appearances for Dundalk in the second half of last season.   Hakiki, who has represented the Republic of Ireland at under 18 level, came through the Shelbourne youth ranks, making 40 first-team appearances.   He has been speaking to Ocean FM Sport’s Ronan Flanagan about his move to The...

Newly re-elected Independent TD in the Sligo-Leitrim Constituency Marian Harkin has confirmed she is open to forming part of the next government. Deputy Harkin was re-elected in the early hours of Sunday morning as the final count confirmed her place in the Dail. However thoughts now turn to the make up of the next government as it's believed a number of independents may prove crucial to making up...

Sligo is one of six local authorities to have failed to achieve a Strong or Excellent score in 10 or more of the 20 National Enforcement Priorities. This comes from a new report by the Environmental Protection Agency on the environmental enforcement performance of local authorities in 2023 Farm inspection rates were cited as being below the level required to drive compliance and improve...