Ocean FM News Reports

Claims that the redevelopment of the N17 is on track as planned have been reiterated by a General Election candidate. Outgoing Fine Gael TD, Frank Feighan, says that if elected, he will also ensure that the matter remains a top priority for the next Government. Doubts were cast over the project following a General Election debate for Sligo/Leitrim candidates last week after it was claimed that mee...

Summerhill College in Sligo has been issued an approval to tender for a long-awaited extension. Some of the developments included are four mainstream classrooms, two science labs and two SEN bases. The approved infrastructure aims to keep up with a growing population while catering for those with additional needs. Fianna Fail General Election candidate and Cllr Edel McSharry praised those who work...

There are fears that south Donegal would be severely impacted over a proposal for the return of Town Councils to bigger towns. A motion was passed by Donegal County Council earlier this week by Fianna Fail Cllr Fionán Bradley, who is calling town councils be created in towns with a population of over 5,000. But Independent Cllr Jimmy Brogan says while he would welcome the reinstatement of Town Cou...

A leading Donegal farming official has called for robust measures to curb dog attacks on sheep. Recent incidents across the country has led to the deaths of over 25 sheep, and it is also issue faced by farmers in the north west. The IFA have highlighted dog ownership laws currently fall between two different departments which has led to gaps in oversight, enforcement, and accountability. IFA Sheep...

There have been calls locally to ease the drain of recently qualified health professionals to other countries. Many doctors, nurses and other workers have been forced to seek employment opportunities abroad. General Election candidate in the Donegal constituency, Mary T. Sweeney says with an increased strain on the health sector, Ireland cannot afford to lose its talent. The Aontú candidate feels...

Sligo County Council have been awarded over 3.6m euro through the Local Community Peace Action Plan. The funding will go towards a number of cross-border intiatives across the county of Sligo. Among the projects set to benefit from today's announcement are the Armada Cross Seasons Border project in North Sligo, and the development of the Brother Walfrid centre in Ballymote. Speaking to Ocean FM Ne...

There's renewed concern over staffing levels at Collooney Day Care centre. Currently there's only a three day service available for service users locally. The HSE is being urged to fund and staff the facility to that it can operate five days a week. Independent General Election candidate and Cllr Marie Casserly believes that the demand is there and feels that the community of Collooney deserve bet...

The European Union is under further pressure to address the severe challenges facing the fishing fleet in Killybegs and elsewhere. Many local boats at Killybegs continue to be tied up while foreign vessels are allowed to fish freely. It's down to quota allocations sanctioned by Europe. MEP Ciaran Mullooly local fishermen are crippled by what is happening and immediate action must be taken:

It looks like a new state-of-the-art Garda headquarters for Sligo has been kicked further down the road. It follows revelations that a business case for a new station will be made in the New Year. Reassurances were given previously that efforts were ongoing to move the project forward. A site in Caltragh has long been earmarked for the new build with the current station on Pearse Road deemed no lo...

A new campaign has been launched to promote the night time economy in Sligo. The ‘Safe & Sound’ initiative by Sligo BID aims to reduce antisocial behaviour and encourage respect within the town. Sligo is one of nine pilot regions for the campaign, and it is hoped that it will provide a boost for local businesses. Edel Doran, Sligo BID’s Night Time Economy Advisor, says the project is active be...

There's further concern over the level of Garda personnel in the Sligo/Leitrim division. Figures published in the latest allocation from Templemore showed the north west, yet again received the lowest number of Gardaí. Of the 108 attested as members in late September, only 8 were stationed in the north west. General Election candidate, Fianna Fáil's Paddy O'Rourke in a time of increased criminal a...

Further reassurances have been given that Day Services will return to Ballyshannon Community Hospital. The HSE confirmed last week that some of the long-stay beds at the hospital have opened, with more to follow soon, including dementia care beds. There had been major fears that the day services would not be reinstated, after a recent statement from HIQA indicated that operating both residential a...

A major warning has been sounded over the future of festivals and events in County Sligo. It's after a decision was taken by Sligo County Council to allocate just €53,000 funding, shared among the entire local industry for the upcoming year. There had already been serious concern over many events being on the brink due to rising running costs. Fine Gael Cllr Thomas Walsh believes that allocating o...

Those participating in this afternoon’s Nurse Clinical Placement Coordinators protest at Sligo University Hospital have been outlining their reasons for doing so.   A number of those affected gathered outside the hospital’s gates over the lack of pay increases to their current contracts.   Despite a recommendation from the expert review body for additional increments last August, none ar...

Nurse Clinical Placement Coordinators staged a lunchtime protest outside the gates of Sligo University Hospital this afternoon.   The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation is claiming that the Department of Health is obstructing the recommended pay increases for them.   They say that the outgoing Minister for Health has ignored a 4,300 strong petition and the Department of Health have d...

It's hoped that a designated Marine Minister can be appointed to fully tackle the fishing industry.   It remains to be seen whether the European Commission will block Norwegian fishing vessels in Irish waters amid fears of overfishing, while local fisheries are stuck with limited quotas.   This, coupled with a potential 18-million-euro loss from a proposed mackerel cut, has many fearing...

There are calls for a cross border approach in tackling flooding issues in Pettigo. The River Termon, which flows between Fermanagh and Donegal, burst its banks over the weekend, resulting in the lower part of Pettigo being badly hit by flood water. Sinn Fein Cllr Michael McMahon says there needs to be an urgent meeting with the relevant bodies north and south to come up with a plan. He believes t...

A Sligo Cllr has defended her decision for opposing a move to increase commercial rates in County Sligo. Cllrs voted in favour of increasing rates by 5% for 2025 at a Budget meeting on Friday. It was thought by most that the money generated would allow a number of projects happen right across the county for the upcoming year. But Fianna Fail Cllr and General Election Candidate Edel McSharry believ...

Emergency services and ESB crews in the North West have been praised for their swift response to a high volume of incidents over the course of the weekend. A large number of roads across Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal were impassable due to flooding, while thousands across the region were without power for a time. Sinn Fein Cllr Thomas Healy says the amount of water that came down was unbelievable whi...

The community of Killybegs is said to be still reeling from the weekend devastation as the result of Storm Bert. It's estimated that twelve homes and ten businesses were severely damaged in the early hours of Saturday morning when flood water ripped through the Bridge Street area of the town. The office of outgoing Deputy and Independent General Election Candidate Thomas Pringle was one of the pre...

There have been further calls for progress on the delivery of flood prevention in south Donegal. Flooding in a number of areas including Killybegs, Donegal Town and the Frosses areas caused severe damage to a number of homes and businesses following Storm Bert over the weekend. Clean-up operations are continuing throughout the area as homes and businesses count the cost of the damage. General Elec...

Met Éireann has upgraded its weather warnings for counties Sligo and Leitrim as part of Storm Bert.   Both counties along with Mayo are now under a status orange wind warning.   That will be in place until 2am on Monday.   Donegal remains under a status yellow wind warning until 8am on Monday morning.   Met Eireann's Gerry Murphy says it’s not your typical storm:

There are hopes a “total solution” can be found to help those affected by Storm Bert in Killybegs. Overnight rain caused serious flood damage to homes and businesses on Saturday. Council staff along with local volunteers participated in a major clean-up operation which lasted several hours and is continuing. Local Fine Gael Councillor, Manus Boyle has been in contact with the relevant department a...

Serious safety concerns have been raised over the state of footpaths in Drumshanbo. The foothpath at Convent Avenue are said to have fallen in disrepair. Ahead of the Christmas period, there are fears locally that someone will be injured close to St. Patrick's Church. Local Fine Gael Councillor Enda McGloin is urging Leitrim County Council to step in and take action on the issue.

No injuries have reported following severe flooding in Killybegs.   Brutal rain caused chaos in Donegal, especially in the south west of the county during Met Éireann's status yellow warning.   A clean-up operation is underway as crews and residents begin to count the costs of the damage.   General Election candidate, Independent Thomas Pringle's office was flooded as a result of th...