theirishtimes--2020-08-08--Revealed: the NPHET advice to Cabinet ahead of midlands lockdown

Public health experts warned the Government that the scale of the Covid-19 outbreaks in the midlands threatened to spread “ much more widely ” in the region over the coming days and weeks .
In a letter to Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly on Friday setting out the reasons for recommending the introduction of new measures , acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn said a tightening of restrictions in Kildare , Laois and Offaly was “ proportionate ” and “ necessary now ” to curb the surge in transmissions .
The same measures “ could apply to any other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dr Glynn , who is also chair of National Public Health Emergency Team ( NPHET ) .
In the letter , which informed the Cabinet ’ s decision to reimpose tough restrictions on the three counties and which has been seen by The Irish Times , Dr Glynn said there has been a change in the progression of the disease since late June .
NPHET has been watching the shifting trends “ with growing concern ” culminating most recently in a sharp rise in infections over the last week .
Cases had more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ several significant and large clusters ” in counties Kildare , Laois and Offaly , Dr Glynn said in the letter .
To illustrate the gravity of the midlands surge , he noted the epidemiological incidence - the number of confirmed cases per population - for coronavirus in Ireland over the last 14 days was 9.6 per 100,000 people .
In Kildare , that figure is 61.6 per 100,000 ; in Laois it is 62.6 per 100,000 ; and in Offaly it is 46.2 per 100,000 .
There have been 150 new confirmed infections @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; 55 in Laois ; and 36 in Offaly .
Dr Glynn pointed out a high proportion of the confirmed cases are among those aged under 45 years .
In Kildare , 75 per cent of cases are under 45 years ; in Laois it is 93 per cent ; and in Offaly the figure is 65 per cent .
Until now , hospitalisations , critical care admissions , nursing home cases and deaths were not showing any worrying trends in the three counties , but because of the age profile of cases @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a “ delay ” in the spread to older and more vulnerable sections of the population in the midlands .
The vast majority of cases in the region were transmitted through close contact with a confirmed case : Kildare 94 per cent ; Laois 91 per cent ; and Offaly 71 per cent .
There were currently “ few cases ” as a result of community transmission , Dr Glynn noted .
Nonetheless , there are “ significant concerns ” in NPHET as all the relevant indicators were showing a “ significant and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ three counties .
Given the scale of outbreaks there is a “ real risk that this could spread much more widely in the community in the coming days and weeks ” , Dr Glynn told Mr Donnelly .
Advising on a tightening of restrictions for two weeks , he said the situation could be “ reviewed ” at that stage .

(From right) Dr Ronan Glynn, acting chief medical officer at Department of Health, and Dr Colm Henry, chief clinical officer. Public health officials were deeply concerned over the scale of the outbreaks in the midlands. Photograph: Collins
Public health experts warned the Government that the scale of the Covid-19 outbreaks in the midlands threatened to spread “much more widely” in the region over the coming days and weeks.
In a letter to Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly on Friday setting out the reasons for recommending the introduction of new measures, acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn said a tightening of restrictions in Kildare, Laois and Offaly was "proportionate" and "necessary now" to curb the surge in transmissions.
The same measures "could apply to any other region in the future", added Dr Glynn, who is also chair of National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET).
In the letter, which informed the Cabinet’s decision to reimpose tough restrictions on the three counties and which has been seen by The Irish Times, Dr Glynn said there has been a change in the progression of the disease since late June.
READ MORE
NPHET has been watching the shifting trends “with growing concern” culminating most recently in a sharp rise in infections over the last week.
Cases had more than doubled over the period with “several significant and large clusters” in counties Kildare, Laois and Offaly, Dr Glynn said in the letter.
To illustrate the gravity of the midlands surge, he noted the epidemiological incidence - the number of confirmed cases per population - for coronavirus in Ireland over the last 14 days was 9.6 per 100,000 people.
In Kildare, that figure is 61.6 per 100,000; in Laois it is 62.6 per 100,000; and in Offaly it is 46.2 per 100,000.
There have been 150 new confirmed infections in Kildare over the past two weeks; 55 in Laois; and 36 in Offaly.
Dr Glynn pointed out a high proportion of the confirmed cases are among those aged under 45 years. In Kildare, 75 per cent of cases are under 45 years; in Laois it is 93 per cent; and in Offaly the figure is 65 per cent.
Until now, hospitalisations, critical care admissions, nursing home cases and deaths were not showing any worrying trends in the three counties, but because of the age profile of cases, NPHET is worried there could be a “delay” in the spread to older and more vulnerable sections of the population in the midlands.
The vast majority of cases in the region were transmitted through close contact with a confirmed case: Kildare 94 per cent; Laois 91 per cent; and Offaly 71 per cent.
There were currently “few cases” as a result of community transmission, Dr Glynn noted.
Nonetheless, there are “significant concerns” in NPHET as all the relevant indicators were showing a “significant and increasing level of disease” in the three counties.
Given the scale of outbreaks there is a “real risk that this could spread much more widely in the community in the coming days and weeks”, Dr Glynn told Mr Donnelly.
Advising on a tightening of restrictions for two weeks, he said the situation could be “reviewed” at that stage.


theirishtimes--2020-08-08--German nudist chases wild boar that stole laptop at Berlin lake

A nudist bather who chased a wild boar near a Berlin lake after it stole his laptop was applauded by onlookers after a successful pursuit .
The photographer who captured the drama said the unidentified nudist was happy for her to share the images , which show him in bare-bottomed pursuit of the boar and her two piglets while fellow bathers look on in amusement .
“ Nature strikes back , ” wrote Adele Landauer , a personal coach , on Facebook .
“ I showed the man the photos , he laughed heartily and gave me permission to make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ naked at the Teufelssee in west Berlin , a popular and perfectly legal practice in the German capital as part of what is known as FKK , or Freikorperkultur ( free body culture ) .
The wild boar , sightings of which have become increasingly common , had apparently spotted a pizza being eaten by other bathers .
It seized a yellow bag containing the man ’ s laptop , probably believing it to contain food , and was chased by the man into the undergrowth .
“ Because the bag contained his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , even though he was in his birthday suit , ” explained Landauer .
The boar ’ s flight was slowed by a cardboard box in its path .
The man clapped his hands and hit the ground with the stick , prompting the boar to drop the laptop .
Another witness said : “ When he returned from the forest , everyone applauded him.
” Derek Ehlert , Berlin ’ s ombudsman for wild animals , told local media that such incidents had become increasingly common , and that foxes had also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lakeside resorts .
“ We urge people not to panic in such a case , ” he said .
“ We have so far had no injuries - the animals are quite used to humans .
”

A nudist bather who chased a wild boar near a Berlin lake after it stole his laptop was applauded by onlookers after a successful pursuit.
The photographer who captured the drama said the unidentified nudist was happy for her to share the images, which show him in bare-bottomed pursuit of the boar and her two piglets while fellow bathers look on in amusement.
"Nature strikes back," wrote Adele Landauer, a personal coach, on Facebook. "I showed the man the photos, he laughed heartily and gave me permission to make them public."
The man was sunbathing naked at the Teufelssee in west Berlin, a popular and perfectly legal practice in the German capital as part of what is known as FKK, or Freikorperkultur (free body culture).
READ MORE
The wild boar, sightings of which have become increasingly common, had apparently spotted a pizza being eaten by other bathers. It seized a yellow bag containing the man’s laptop, probably believing it to contain food, and was chased by the man into the undergrowth.
“Because the bag contained his laptop, he gave it his all, even though he was in his birthday suit,” explained Landauer.
The boar’s flight was slowed by a cardboard box in its path. The man clapped his hands and hit the ground with the stick, prompting the boar to drop the laptop.
Another witness said: “When he returned from the forest, everyone applauded him.”
Derek Ehlert, Berlin's ombudsman for wild animals, told local media that such incidents had become increasingly common, and that foxes had also become regular visitors to Berlin's lakeside resorts.
“We urge people not to panic in such a case,” he said. “We have so far had no injuries - the animals are quite used to humans.”
- Guardian


theirishtimes--2020-08-08--Inside the dog-trafficking trade: ‘After drugs, it’s guns, then pups’

When news emerged this week that 10 suspected stolen dogs had been found during a search on a property in Rathkeale , Co Limerick , Orlagh Eichholz ’ s heart soared .
The schoolteacher got a phone call from the gardaí to say at least one of the dogs recovered was a springer spaniel – the same breed as the Eichholz family pet , nine-year-old Molly , who disappeared from the front garden of their home in Co Tipperary on Friday , July 17th .
But Eichholz wasn ’ t all that surprised when it turned out not to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after she went missing , Eichholz got an anonymous tip-off about Molly , who had often accompanied her to school , and as a result , was well-known in the area .
The tip-off led her to someone with knowledge of what happened to her dog .
Eichholz has since been has been able to piece together some of Molly ’ s journey after she was allegedly taken .
Spending 12 hours here and 24 hours there , she had up to eight different owners in the week after she disappeared , Eichholz @ @ @ @ @ @ @ involved initially were small .
“ Nobody involved in the first two transactions made more than €100 profit , ” she believes .
“ The guards have been brilliant .
They actually have made a big effort to track her down , but they ’ re fairly certain that Molly has been sent off in a shipment to the UK , ” she says .
“ We have it from a source that she has ended up in the UK with many other Irish dogs.
” Eichholz is convinced her dog will be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unsuspecting family in the UK .
“ She was stolen for cash .
Quick cash.
” By the time she reaches the UK , Molly ’ s value will have increased significantly .
“ On websites in the UK , they ’ re [ asking ] £2,000 [ €2,216 ] to £3,000 for a springer spaniel of any age , ” she says .
“ There is a black market for dogs at present .
We are aware of a lot of dogs that are being stolen in the Munster region are being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ says Detective Sergeant Michael Reidy of Newcastle West , who led the investigation into the dogs recovered last weekend in Rathkeale .
The 10 dogs recovered after a search on a house in the town on Saturday were bound for the UK , and were due to be shipped out as early as Bank Holiday Monday , intelligence gathered by the investigating team suggests .
Det Sgt Reidy says there has been “ an increase , absolutely , in dog thefts ” in the region since lockdown .
“ We had 14 dogs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we had up to 50 dogs stolen in the Limerick area alone in the past few weeks .
The price of all dogs has gone through the roof in recent times .
It ’ s become a very lucrative industry.
” Criminal elements frequently tap into a network of people who help them to identify suitable dogs , sometimes by responding to an online ad for dogs for sale .
“ A person might turn up at your door purporting to be interested , and that information is passed on .
And suddenly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is taken , it can frequently change hands a number of times before eventually being sent to the UK , as Eichholz has been told happened to Molly .
One of the dogs recovered in Rathkeale last weekend has since gone back to the breeder concerned .
Three or four of the other animals are due to be returned to their owners this weekend .
Efforts to find owners for the rest are being hampered by the fact that , although it is a legal requirement , not all of the dogs have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ re finding a lot of the dogs that we ’ re recovering are being linked back to the original breeder .
So unfortunately the person buying the dog isn ’ t going online and updating the new registration details , ” says Reidy .
It is also the case that sometimes “ chip details can be altered and compromised ” by more sophisticated elements of the dog-trafficking networks , he suggests .
“ Unfortunately at the moment , dogs are a valuable commodity , ” says Corina Fitzsimons of Dogs Trust .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ for dogs during lockdown .
It was totally unprecedented.
” A cocker spaniel which cost €400 at the beginning of March can now fetch three or four times that on online marketplaces in Ireland .
As the value of dogs has risen , inevitably , so has their vulnerability to theft .
Official figures from An Garda Síochána for the first six months of the year do not , however , show “ a spike in recorded activity on the theft of dogs during the 1st half of 2020 , ” a statement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of dog theft incidents until July 15th this year was 53 .
This compared to 70 in 2019 , and 60 in 2020 .
The total number of dogs involved was 120 in the first half of this year ; in 2019 , it was 205 ; the previous year , 145 .
Nonetheless , online lost and stolen dogs pages are filled with reports of missing dogs .
Eight-year-old female cocker spaniel : missing , presumed stolen .
Chubba , a four-year-old springer-cross-poodle : missing .
Crossbreed Louie : missing , substantial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of lost and found dogs , are another set of images : chalk marks left on pillars at the gate , or cable ties attached to poles .
Posters on the Facebook pages believe these are used to signal to prospective thieves that there is a dog on the property .
“ Gardaí are aware of posts showing markings and cable ties that have allegedly been left on gates and boundary walls of properties which identify houses where there is potential to steal dogs .
Gardaí would encourage reporting all such incidents or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on social media , ” the Garda statement said .
But Reidy doesn ’ t believe this kind of marking of properties is a significant factor in dog thefts in Munster .
“ Based on our intelligence , it ’ s a bit like the runners thrown over the wires in the old days.
” There is no evidence of a link to subsequent dog thefts in the area , he says .
Zara Dunne is one of those who believes her dog , Meg – a neutered , two-year-old springer spaniel – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bank holiday Monday from near the family home in Baker ’ s Bridge , Co Cavan .
“ She ’ d been around all day .
And then at about 4pm , she literally just vanished .
We asked neighbours and reported it to the guards , the local SPCA , the dog warden , and the vets , tried to get it out on Facebook .
“ It ’ s the not knowing .
If you knew someone had her and she ’ s safe obviously , that would be devastating , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ safe.
” She is worried that “ when they realise dogs aren ’ t suitable for breeding , they ’ re using them for dog bait , for fights.
” Meg has a microchip and is registered , which means Dunne has a better chance of recovering her if she ’ s found .
“ What we ’ re asking people to do is to microchip their dogs , ” says Fitzsimons .
This does not mean “ you can trace your dog if they ’ re taken .
There ’ s no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ permanent way of being able to identify your dog if they are found.
” Owners also need to ensure the microchip is registered and they are listed as the owner in one of the national database .
Vet Finbarr Heslin runs one of those databases , Fido.ie .
“ There ’ s no doubt [ dog theft ] is happening .
I just don ’ t think there ’ s a plague of it .
People will put a flag on the system saying a dog is missing , and they ’ ll @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the dog turns up.
” What is definitely happening is that the value of dogs has soared .
In June , Fido.ie website had a jump of 57 per cent in the number of new dog registrations compared to the previous year .
At his veterinary practice , “ I don ’ t remember ever seeing the number of new dogs that we ’ ve seen in the last three months.
” Ireland has one of the most tightly regulated regimes on dog ownership in Europe , he says , making it very @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on here .
“ If you arrive into me with a new pup , I ’ ll scan it , and we ’ ll get onto the database to see if there ’ s a previous owner .
If there is , we have a set of standard operating procedures .
We get onto the previous owner , whether they ’ re in Meath or in the Netherlands or France .
And that ’ s usually where they ’ ll go , no , that dog was stolen.
” Since last February , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for sale or transfer online without it being properly registered and having a microchip number .
Nefarious dealers can find ways around this – by using the same chip number for multiple dogs , for example – but it is another safeguard .
However , in the UK , where there are 14 different dog registration databases , dogs can more easily fall through the cracks .
Many dogs stolen here end up on the UK market .
“ At European level , pups are now the third most-trafficked entity .
After drugs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then pups .
The legal dog trade in Europe is worth €13 billion a year , ” says Heslin .
There ’ s much less risk involved in trafficking pups .
“ If you rock up at Dublin port with a boot full of puppies , worst case scenario , they might be taken off you .
But you ’ re not going to end up in court .
If you do the same with a big bag of drugs or a human in your car , you ’ re in trouble , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Clare Cathal Crowe wants the law changed so that pups can ’ t be advertised for sale on social media sites like Instagram or Facebook or online marketplaces like Done Deal or Adverts .
Dogs who pass through Irish ports should all have their microchips scanned , he says .
And he would like to see a separate category created for dog theft in legislation .
“ At the moment , [ a stolen dog ] is treated like an inanimate object.
” Fear for the safety of their dogs is causing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In the past month , I ’ ve had more than 15 or 16 people onto my office about it.
” A handful had dogs stolen , the rest were just terrified by what they ’ d read online about the “ epidemic ” of dognapping .
Cormac Connolly did not assume the worst when his beloved 12-year-old shi tzu , Jasper , went wandering away from home in Monaghan during the night of Monday July 27th .
But “ when I got up the next morning at 8.30 , he still hadn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ maybe he ’ d gone chasing a bitch that was in season.
” But he checked with the neighbours and there was no sign of Jasper .
“ Then I started looking for a body .
After two days , I resigned myself to the fact that he wasn ’ t coming back.
” The idea that Jasper might have been stolen hadn ’ t occurred to him , but his daughter put a post up on Facebook .
Less than a week later , “ a woman called Tess McLaughlin shared a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him in Letterkenny , ” 112km from home .
He had been wandering around her estate .
Even when Connolly saw the photos , he wasn ’ t convinced .
“ I said it looks like him , but how would he have got to Letterkenny ?
” It was only when McLaughlin took the dog to a vet in Derry – the only one open on the August Bank Holiday – to get scanned that he really believed it was Jasper .
“ I never thought he would have been dognapped .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ could get from Monaghan to Donegal unless somebody put him in a vehicle.
” How does he feel now he has Jasper back ?
“ You can ’ t describe that feeling .
Just unfettered relief.
” Meanwhile , Eichholz and Dunne are still anxiously waiting for news of their dogs .
“ She sleeps in a little bed beside the radiator .
She ’ s next-level spoilt , ” says Eichholz .
“ And now to think of her thrown in a cage with loads of other dogs is just awful .
@

When news emerged this week that 10 suspected stolen dogs had been found during a search on a property in Rathkeale, Co Limerick, Orlagh Eichholz's heart soared.
The schoolteacher got a phone call from the gardaí to say at least one of the dogs recovered was a springer spaniel – the same breed as the Eichholz family pet, nine-year-old Molly, who disappeared from the front garden of their home in Co Tipperary on Friday, July 17th.
But Eichholz wasn’t all that surprised when it turned out not to be her dog. A week or so after she went missing, Eichholz got an anonymous tip-off about Molly, who had often accompanied her to school, and as a result, was well-known in the area.
The tip-off led her to someone with knowledge of what happened to her dog. Eichholz has since been has been able to piece together some of Molly’s journey after she was allegedly taken.
READ MORE
One of the dogs recovered by gardaí in Rathkeale. Photograph: An Garda Síochána Facebook page
Spending 12 hours here and 24 hours there, she had up to eight different owners in the week after she disappeared, Eichholz has learned. The sums of money involved initially were small. “Nobody involved in the first two transactions made more than €100 profit,” she believes.
“The guards have been brilliant. They actually have made a big effort to track her down, but they’re fairly certain that Molly has been sent off in a shipment to the UK,” she says.
“We have it from a source that she has ended up in the UK with many other Irish dogs.”
Eichholz is convinced her dog will be sold on as a pet to an unsuspecting family in the UK. “She was stolen for cash. Quick cash.”
By the time she reaches the UK, Molly’s value will have increased significantly. “On websites in the UK, they’re [asking] £2,000 [€2,216]to £3,000 for a springer spaniel of any age,” she says.
"There is a black market for dogs at present. We are aware of a lot of dogs that are being stolen in the Munster region are being sold on in the UK," says Detective Sergeant Michael Reidy of Newcastle West, who led the investigation into the dogs recovered last weekend in Rathkeale.
Once a dog is taken, it can frequently change hands a number of times before eventually being sent to the UK
The 10 dogs recovered after a search on a house in the town on Saturday were bound for the UK, and were due to be shipped out as early as Bank Holiday Monday, intelligence gathered by the investigating team suggests.
Det Sgt Reidy says there has been “an increase, absolutely, in dog thefts” in the region since lockdown. “We had 14 dogs stolen from a single breeder. And we had up to 50 dogs stolen in the Limerick area alone in the past few weeks. The price of all dogs has gone through the roof in recent times. It’s become a very lucrative industry.”
Criminal elements frequently tap into a network of people who help them to identify suitable dogs, sometimes by responding to an online ad for dogs for sale. “A person might turn up at your door purporting to be interested, and that information is passed on. And suddenly the dog disappears.”
Once a dog is taken, it can frequently change hands a number of times before eventually being sent to the UK, as Eichholz has been told happened to Molly.
One of the dogs recovered in Rathkeale last weekend has since gone back to the breeder concerned. Three or four of the other animals are due to be returned to their owners this weekend. Efforts to find owners for the rest are being hampered by the fact that, although it is a legal requirement, not all of the dogs have up-to-date, registered microchips. “We’re finding a lot of the dogs that we’re recovering are being linked back to the original breeder. So unfortunately the person buying the dog isn’t going online and updating the new registration details,” says Reidy.
It is also the case that sometimes “chip details can be altered and compromised” by more sophisticated elements of the dog-trafficking networks, he suggests.
"Unfortunately at the moment, dogs are a valuable commodity," says Corina Fitzsimons of Dogs Trust. "Nobody could have predicted the demand for dogs during lockdown. It was totally unprecedented."
A cocker spaniel which cost €400 at the beginning of March can now fetch three or four times that on online marketplaces in Ireland. As the value of dogs has risen, inevitably, so has their vulnerability to theft.
Official figures from An Garda Síochána for the first six months of the year do not, however, show "a spike in recorded activity on the theft of dogs during the 1st half of 2020," a statement said last week. The total number of dog theft incidents until July 15th this year was 53. This compared to 70 in 2019, and 60 in 2020. The total number of dogs involved was 120 in the first half of this year; in 2019, it was 205; the previous year, 145.
Photograph: An Garda Síochána Facebook page
Nonetheless, online lost and stolen dogs pages are filled with reports of missing dogs. Eight-year-old female cocker spaniel: missing, presumed stolen. Chubba, a four-year-old springer-cross-poodle: missing. Crossbreed Louie: missing, substantial reward offered.
Alongside the plaintive photos of lost and found dogs, are another set of images: chalk marks left on pillars at the gate, or cable ties attached to poles. Posters on the Facebook pages believe these are used to signal to prospective thieves that there is a dog on the property.
“Gardaí are aware of posts showing markings and cable ties that have allegedly been left on gates and boundary walls of properties which identify houses where there is potential to steal dogs. Gardaí would encourage reporting all such incidents or suspicious activity to Gardaí rather than posting on social media,” the Garda statement said.
One of the dogs recovered by gardaí in Rathkeale. Photograph: An Garda Síochána Facebook page
But Reidy doesn’t believe this kind of marking of properties is a significant factor in dog thefts in Munster. “Based on our intelligence, it’s a bit like the runners thrown over the wires in the old days.” There is no evidence of a link to subsequent dog thefts in the area, he says.
Microchipping
Zara Dunne is one of those who believes her dog, Meg – a neutered, two-year-old springer spaniel – was stolen. Meg disappeared on August bank holiday Monday from near the family home in Baker's Bridge, Co Cavan. "She'd been around all day. And then at about 4pm, she literally just vanished. We asked neighbours and reported it to the guards, the local SPCA, the dog warden, and the vets, tried to get it out on Facebook.
“It’s the not knowing. If you knew someone had her and she’s safe obviously, that would be devastating, but you’d know she was safe.”
One of the dogs recovered by gardaí following the operation. Photograph: An Garda Síochána Facebook page
She is worried that “when they realise dogs aren’t suitable for breeding, they’re using them for dog bait, for fights.”
Meg has a microchip and is registered, which means Dunne has a better chance of recovering her if she’s found.
“What we’re asking people to do is to microchip their dogs,” says Fitzsimons. This does not mean “you can trace your dog if they’re taken. There’s no GPS. But it is the best permanent way of being able to identify your dog if they are found.” Owners also need to ensure the microchip is registered and they are listed as the owner in one of the national database.
Vet Finbarr Heslin runs one of those databases, Fido.ie. “There’s no doubt [dog theft] is happening. I just don’t think there’s a plague of it. People will put a flag on the system saying a dog is missing, and they’ll forget to turn the flag off when the dog turns up.”
What is definitely happening is that the value of dogs has soared. In June, Fido.ie website had a jump of 57 per cent in the number of new dog registrations compared to the previous year. At his veterinary practice, “I don’t remember ever seeing the number of new dogs that we’ve seen in the last three months.”
Ireland has one of the most tightly regulated regimes on dog ownership in Europe, he says, making it very difficult for stolen dogs to be sold on here. "If you arrive into me with a new pup, I'll scan it, and we'll get onto the database to see if there's a previous owner. If there is, we have a set of standard operating procedures. We get onto the previous owner, whether they're in Meath or in the Netherlands or France. And that's usually where they'll go, no, that dog was stolen."
Since last February, a dog can’t be advertised for sale or transfer online without it being properly registered and having a microchip number. Nefarious dealers can find ways around this – by using the same chip number for multiple dogs, for example – but it is another safeguard.
However, in the UK, where there are 14 different dog registration databases, dogs can more easily fall through the cracks. Many dogs stolen here end up on the UK market. “At European level, pups are now the third most-trafficked entity. After drugs, it’s guns, and then pups. The legal dog trade in Europe is worth €13 billion a year,” says Heslin.
There’s much less risk involved in trafficking pups. “If you rock up at Dublin port with a boot full of puppies, worst case scenario, they might be taken off you. But you’re not going to end up in court. If you do the same with a big bag of drugs or a human in your car, you’re in trouble,” says Heslin.
‘Inanimate object’
Fianna Fáil TD for Clare Cathal Crowe wants the law changed so that pups can't be advertised for sale on social media sites like Instagram or Facebook or online marketplaces like Done Deal or Adverts. Dogs who pass through Irish ports should all have their microchips scanned, he says. And he would like to see a separate category created for dog theft in legislation. "At the moment, [a stolen dog] is treated like an inanimate object."
Fear for the safety of their dogs is causing huge concern among his constituents. “In the past month, I’ve had more than 15 or 16 people onto my office about it.” A handful had dogs stolen, the rest were just terrified by what they’d read online about the “epidemic” of dognapping.
Cormac Connolly did not assume the worst when his beloved 12-year-old shi tzu, Jasper, went wandering away from home in Monaghan during the night of Monday July 27th. But "when I got up the next morning at 8.30, he still hadn't come back. I thought maybe he'd gone chasing a bitch that was in season."
But he checked with the neighbours and there was no sign of Jasper. “Then I started looking for a body. After two days, I resigned myself to the fact that he wasn’t coming back.”
The idea that Jasper might have been stolen hadn't occurred to him, but his daughter put a post up on Facebook. Less than a week later, "a woman called Tess McLaughlin shared a photograph of a dog that looked like him in Letterkenny, " 112km from home. He had been wandering around her estate.
Even when Connolly saw the photos, he wasn’t convinced. “I said it looks like him, but how would he have got to Letterkenny?”
It was only when McLaughlin took the dog to a vet in Derry – the only one open on the August Bank Holiday – to get scanned that he really believed it was Jasper. "I never thought he would have been dognapped. But there's no way he could get from Monaghan to Donegal unless somebody put him in a vehicle."
How does he feel now he has Jasper back? “You can’t describe that feeling. Just unfettered relief.”
Meanwhile, Eichholz and Dunne are still anxiously waiting for news of their dogs. “She sleeps in a little bed beside the radiator. She’s next-level spoilt,” says Eichholz. “And now to think of her thrown in a cage with loads of other dogs is just awful.”


theirishtimes--2020-08-08--DoneDeal suspends adverts for sale of dogs after spate of dog thefts

The online selling website , DoneDeal , has temporarily suspended advertisements for the sale of dogs in the wake of gardaí highlighting a number of dog thefts in recent months .
The company said it had taken the decision to temporarily suspend the dogs section on its website as a result of discussions with animal welfare organisations and recent unprecedented demand from advertisers in Ireland .
“ This will allow us to focus on introducing further solutions that limit the possibility of improper dog adverts being listed on DoneDeal , ” it added .
Animal welfare groups have expressed concern @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sale online on various websites .
Gardaí have made a number of seizures in recent weeks of stolen dogs including the recovery of 10 animals during a search operation in Rathkeale , Co Limerick last Saturday .
In a message posted on its website , DoneDeal said it was working closely with several animal welfare organisations including the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Department of Agriculture to comply with legislation and meet standards set out by the Irish Pet Advertising Advisory Group .
The company said it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very seriously and would continue to introduce measures to improve animal welfare and advertising transparency in Ireland .
However , DoneDeal expressed concern that the suspension of its dogs section might push the sale of dogs offline which could lead to reduced transparency .
DoneDeal said it was not possible for its customer service team to manually review every offer placed on its website given it carries over 200,000 individual ads each month .
It acknowledged it was forced to rely on “ technical measures ” to try and block improper content , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ takedown ” policy in response to any concerns raised by users of the website .
DoneDeal said any ads which breached its terms and conditions would be taken down immediately .
It also pointed out it had taken a number of other measures to improve traceability including the introduction of a two-stage phone verification process for advertisers in its dogs section .
“ We are working hard to find the right , next technical solutions to improve animal welfare in Ireland though there are limits to what is possible for use along as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It added : “ Our intention is to prevent the possibility of advertisers making false statements but in some cases we rely on users of DoneDeal to report these advertisements to us.
” The Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals welcomed the initiative taken by Done Deal , describing the temporary ban on advertisements for the sale of dogs as “ a good step forward ” .
However , DSPCA spokesperson , Gillian Bird , said the organisation was still opposed to all online sales of dogs .
“ There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ breeders can advertise dogs for sale , ” Ms Bird remarked .
She claimed the big issue for animal welfare groups was the lack of traceability associated with online sales which made them attractive for unscrupulous breeders and operators of “ puppy farms ” .
Although new legislation has come into effect requiring advertisements for the sale of dogs to carry the microchip number of the animal , Ms Bird expressed concern that the requirement was not being monitored by all advertisers or the Department of Agriculture .
Since February 1st , anyone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ must also register sales with the Department of Agriculture .
The DSPCA has advised people wishing to obtain a dog as a pet to go through a breeder registered with the Irish Kennel Club or one of the approved animal rescue centres .
A total of 120 dogs were reported as stolen in the year up to July 15th .
The total number of dogs recorded as stolen last year was 205 , though gardaí believe the theft of many animals goes unreported .

One of the 10 dogs found by gardaí in Rathkeale, Co Limerick. Photograph: An Garda Síochána Facebook
The online selling website, DoneDeal, has temporarily suspended advertisements for the sale of dogs in the wake of gardaí highlighting a number of dog thefts in recent months.
The company said it had taken the decision to temporarily suspend the dogs section on its website as a result of discussions with animal welfare organisations and recent unprecedented demand from advertisers in Ireland.
“This will allow us to focus on introducing further solutions that limit the possibility of improper dog adverts being listed on DoneDeal,” it added.
Animal welfare groups have expressed concern that stolen dogs are subsequently offered for sale online on various websites.
READ MORE
Gardaí have made a number of seizures in recent weeks of stolen dogs including the recovery of 10 animals during a search operation in Rathkeale, Co Limerick last Saturday.
In a message posted on its website, DoneDeal said it was working closely with several animal welfare organisations including the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Department of Agriculture to comply with
Advice from An Garda Síochána around prevention of dog theft
legislation and meet standards set out by the Irish Pet Advertising Advisory Group.
The company said it took its responsibilities as an advertising platform very seriously and would continue to introduce measures to improve animal welfare and advertising transparency in Ireland.
Reduced transparency
However, DoneDeal expressed concern that the suspension of its dogs section might push the sale of dogs offline which could lead to reduced transparency.
DoneDeal said it was not possible for its customer service team to manually review every offer placed on its website given it carries over 200,000 individual ads each month.
It acknowledged it was forced to rely on “technical measures” to try and block improper content, while also operating a “notice and takedown” policy in response to any concerns raised by users of the website.
DoneDeal said any ads which breached its terms and conditions would be taken down immediately.
It also pointed out it had taken a number of other measures to improve traceability including the introduction of a two-stage phone verification process for advertisers in its dogs section.
“We are working hard to find the right, next technical solutions to improve animal welfare in Ireland though there are limits to what is possible for use along as a publisher,” DoneDeal said.
It added: “Our intention is to prevent the possibility of advertisers making false statements but in some cases we rely on users of DoneDeal to report these advertisements to us.”
The Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals welcomed the initiative taken by Done Deal, describing the temporary ban on advertisements for the sale of dogs as “a good step forward”.
However, DSPCA spokesperson, Gillian Bird, said the organisation was still opposed to all online sales of dogs.
"There are still some other sites where unscrupulous breeders can advertise dogs for sale," Ms Bird remarked.
She claimed the big issue for animal welfare groups was the lack of traceability associated with online sales which made them attractive for unscrupulous breeders and operators of “puppy farms”.
Although new legislation has come into effect requiring advertisements for the sale of dogs to carry the microchip number of the animal, Ms Bird expressed concern that the requirement was not being monitored by all advertisers or the Department of Agriculture.
Since February 1st, anyone selling five or more pets per annum must also register sales with the Department of Agriculture.
The DSPCA has advised people wishing to obtain a dog as a pet to go through a breeder registered with the Irish Kennel Club or one of the approved animal rescue centres.
A total of 120 dogs were reported as stolen in the year up to July 15th. The total number of dogs recorded as stolen last year was 205, though gardaí believe the theft of many animals goes unreported.


theirishtimes--2020-08-08--Thinking Anew: Immigration, slavery and racism are not new issues

In tomorrow ’ s reading from Genesis we have a story about family life , of sadness and intrigue ; a father and a favourite son called Joseph and his jealous siblings who sell him into captivity in Egypt – one of the great stories of the Hebrew bible but taken on its own it has limited value .
Context explains .
Some years after the Joseph event his family/tribe were in trouble .
They were a nomadic people and when famine struck they headed for Egypt , a major power with food reserves they were willing to share .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ were seen as a threat by the Egyptians .
This led to their enslavement and eventually the Exodus which has inspired freedom movements ever since .
Leaving questions of historicity aside , these ancient texts show that thousands of years ago people were dealing with issues that trouble us to this day – immigration , racism and slavery .
The moral perspective is highlighted by the presence of the God , who is active on the side of justice and freedom .
“ Let my people go ” – the divine command that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ world and especially in America in recent times .
John Lewis , the American politician and civil-rights leader died recently .
In 1963 he joined Martin Luther King and others on the March on Washington , to protest against racial segregation in the US .
In 1965 , while leading a peaceful march across Alabama ’ s Edmund Pettus Bridge , Lewis was brutally beaten by police .
At his funeral , former US president Bill Clinton described how he carried a backpack on that march : “ John put an apple , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to take care of his body ’ cause he figured he would get arrested .
And two books .
.
.
one , the autobiography of Thomas Merton , a Roman Catholic Trappist monk .
.
.
I think he figured that if Thomas Merton could find his way and keep his faith and believe in the future , he , John Lewis could too.
” Fr Merton connected to Lewis because he exposed the negative thinking of the opposition .
In Disputed Questions he explained : “ Its solutions are simple and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a simple glance at a face , a coloured skin , a uniform .
It identifies the enemy by an accent , an unfamiliar turn of speech , an appeal to concepts that are difficult to understand .
.
.
This is not ‘ ours ’ .
This must be brought into line – or destroyed .
Here is the great temptation of the modern age , this universal infection of fanaticism , this plague of intolerance , prejudice and hate flows from the crippled nature of man who is afraid of love @ @ @ @ @ @ @ person .
It is against this temptation most of all that the Christian must labour with inexhaustible patience and love , in silence , perhaps in repeated failure , seeking tirelessly to restore , wherever he can , and first of all in himself , the capacity of love and understanding which makes man the living image of God.
” That mindset is evident in today ’ s so-called populist movements in Europe and America including those opposed to the Black Lives Matter movement often claiming to act in defence of Christian values @ @ @ @ @ @ @ duty of Christians to confront hatred and intolerance wherever it exists – not always easy as we know from the difficulties we have relating to the Travelling community , immigrants and other labelled groups .
The Gospel reading ( Matthew 14 : 24-33 ) has a message for churches preoccupied with inhouse matters .
The disciples are in a boat caught up in a severe storm .
They panic when they see Jesus in the distance “ walking on the lake ” .
Peter tries to join him but discovers he can not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ feel safe only when Jesus comes on board and takes control .
The Methodist Theologian Rev Dr John Vincent suggests what discipleship demands : “ God in Jesus Christ enters the human battles for existence and wholeness and exerts his power to redeem men .
The disciples are called to enter into this decisive issue – not merely to ‘ decide ’ about it but participate in it .
”

John Lewis, the American politician and civil-rights leader died recently. In 1963 he joined Martin Luther King and others on the March on Washington, to protest against racial segregation in the US. Photograph: Sam Falk/The New York Times
In tomorrow’s reading from Genesis we have a story about family life, of sadness and intrigue; a father and a favourite son called Joseph and his jealous siblings who sell him into captivity in Egypt – one of the great stories of the Hebrew bible but taken on its own it has limited value. Context explains.
Some years after the Joseph event his family/tribe were in trouble. They were a nomadic people and when famine struck they headed for Egypt, a major power with food reserves they were willing to share. They settled and prospered but in time were seen as a threat by the Egyptians. This led to their enslavement and eventually the Exodus which has inspired freedom movements ever since.
Leaving questions of historicity aside, these ancient texts show that thousands of years ago people were dealing with issues that trouble us to this day – immigration, racism and slavery. The moral perspective is highlighted by the presence of the God, who is active on the side of justice and freedom. “Let my people go” – the divine command that has echoed through time and around the world and especially in America in recent times.
John Lewis, the American politician and civil-rights leader died recently. In 1963 he joined Martin Luther King and others on the March on Washington, to protest against racial segregation in the US.
READ MORE
In 1965, while leading a peaceful march across Alabama’s Edmund Pettus Bridge, Lewis was brutally beaten by police. At his funeral, former US president Bill Clinton described how he carried a backpack on that march: “John put an apple, an orange, a toothbrush, toothpaste to take care of his body ’cause he figured he would get arrested. And two books . . . one, the autobiography of Thomas Merton, a Roman Catholic Trappist monk . . . I think he figured that if Thomas Merton could find his way and keep his faith and believe in the future, he, John Lewis could too.”
Fr Merton connected to Lewis because he exposed the negative thinking of the opposition. In Disputed Questions he explained: “Its solutions are simple and easy. It makes its decisions by a simple glance at a face, a coloured skin, a uniform. It identifies the enemy by an accent, an unfamiliar turn of speech, an appeal to concepts that are difficult to understand . . . This is not ‘ours’. This must be brought into line – or destroyed. Here is the great temptation of the modern age, this universal infection of fanaticism, this plague of intolerance, prejudice and hate flows from the crippled nature of man who is afraid of love and does not dare to be a person. It is against this temptation most of all that the Christian must labour with inexhaustible patience and love, in silence, perhaps in repeated failure, seeking tirelessly to restore, wherever he can, and first of all in himself, the capacity of love and understanding which makes man the living image of God.”
That mindset is evident in today’s so-called populist movements in Europe and America including those opposed to the Black Lives Matter movement often claiming to act in defence of Christian values.
Fr Merton insists it is the duty of Christians to confront hatred and intolerance wherever it exists – not always easy as we know from the difficulties we have relating to the Travelling community, immigrants and other labelled groups.
The Gospel reading (Matthew 14: 24-33) has a message for churches preoccupied with inhouse matters. The disciples are in a boat caught up in a severe storm. They panic when they see Jesus in the distance “walking on the lake”. Peter tries to join him but discovers he cannot make it by himself. The disciples feel safe only when Jesus comes on board and takes control.
The Methodist Theologian Rev Dr John Vincent suggests what discipleship demands: “God in Jesus Christ enters the human battles for existence and wholeness and exerts his power to redeem men. The disciples are called to enter into this decisive issue – not merely to ‘decide’ about it but participate in it.”
GORDON LINNEY


theirishtimes--2020-08-08--Eye on Nature: Squids, moths and barnacles under the magnifying glass

The Delahunt family , Wicklow : We came across this tiny squid , about 4cm long , on a Wicklow beach .
It was burrowing in the sand with just its eyes sticking out , changing colour and squirting ink .
Could it be the Atlantic bobtail ?
Ethna Viney : Yes , it is the bobtail squid , Sepiola atlantica , a species closely related to the cuttlefish .
It has a light organ in its mantle that can change its colour and outline .
Mark Simpson Donnybrook , Dublin 4 : Could you identify this moth .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wing ?
Ethna Viney : It ’ s the swallowtail moth , one of the largest .
Jean Byrne , Caherdaniel Co Kerry : My son noticed this beautiful moth on Murlough beach in Co Down .
More red was visible when it spread its wings .
Ethna Viney : It ’ s the garden tiger moth .
Several photos were sent in ; this is by Jean Byrne , Caherdaniel Co Kerry .
Ann Keogh , Oughterard , Co Galway : These logs on the shoreline in Inishbofin were covered with tunnels @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like they were bored by some kind of worm .
Ethna Viney : The holes were made by ship worms , perhaps Teredo navalis or similar .
Padraic O Malley , Clare Island : A corncrake sauntered out of a clump of tall grass about 10m from the front door of the post office here .
Ethna Viney : There were a large number of requests for the identification of clusters of barnacles , attached often to seaweed , washed in on the shore .
They were buoy-making barnacles , Lepas fascicularis , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and not unlike them .
The stalk secretes a spongy white float .
This photo was sent by Sara Boyce Rosapenna , Co Donegal .
Ethna Viney welcomes observations and photographs at Thallabawn , Louisburgh , Co Mayo , F28 F978 , or by email at viney @ anu.ie .
Include a postal address

The Delahunt family, Wicklow:
We came across this tiny squid, about 4cm long, on a Wicklow beach. It was burrowing in the sand with just its eyes sticking out, changing colour and squirting ink. Could it be the Atlantic bobtail?
Ethna Viney:
Yes, it is the bobtail squid, Sepiola atlantica, a species closely related to the cuttlefish. It has a light organ in its mantle that can change its colour and outline.
swallowtail moth
Mark Simpson Donnybrook, Dublin 4:
Could you identify this moth. It was quite large, 35mm wing to wing?
Ethna Viney:
It's the swallowtail moth, one of the largest.
READ MORE
garden tiger moth
Jean Byrne, Caherdaniel Co Kerry:
My son noticed this beautiful moth on Murlough beach in Co Down. More red was visible when it spread its wings.
Ethna Viney:
It's the garden tiger moth. Several photos were sent in; this is by Jean Byrne, Caherdaniel Co Kerry.
logs with indents by ship worms
Ann Keogh, Oughterard, Co Galway:
These logs on the shoreline in Inishbofin were covered with tunnels, all different sizes, that looked like they were bored by some kind of worm.
Ethna Viney:
The holes were made by ship worms, perhaps Teredo navalis or similar.
buoy-making barnacles attahed to seaweed
Padraic O Malley, Clare Island:
A corncrake sauntered out of a clump of tall grass about 10m from the front door of the post office here.
Ethna Viney:
There were a large number of requests for the identification of clusters of barnacles, attached often to seaweed, washed in on the shore. They were buoy-making barnacles, Lepas fascicularis, the same family as the gooseneck barnacles and not unlike them. The stalk secretes a spongy white float. This photo was sent by Sara Boyce Rosapenna, Co Donegal.
Ethna Viney welcomes observations and photographs at Thallabawn, Louisburgh, Co Mayo, F28 F978, or by email at viney@anu.ie. Include a postal address


theirishtimes--2020-08-08--Another Life: Our second ash comes into conflict with technology

I could have looked up when kneeling to plant the little ash tree some 30-odd years ago .
Then I might have considered the powerline high above me , strung from the transformer beyond the hedge to the pole beside the house .
But perhaps I just couldn ’ t imagine the ambition locked up in the sapling I was firming in .
This summer , as the tree ’ s topmost twigs reached up to embrace the wire , I began to dread the approach of early autumn storms .
It was time to consult the ESB .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
If the offending tree is beyond the immediate domestic pole , they will , in good time , despatch a remedial team with a baby chainsaw on a very long pole .
This was , sadly , our second ash to come into conflict with technology .
A tree planted closer to the house grew into a strong-muscled , shapely candelabra , beautiful in every season .
But it came to obstruct the wireless beams by which we shared our broadband with neighbours .
Its pollarding prompted final felling , to our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ashes of the west stand as defiantly healthy emblems of their kind .
Further east , and across the midlands , hedgerow ashes and forest plantations have been scarred by “ the single most devastating forest pathogen ever to hit the postglacial woodlands of Ireland ” .
That was Teagasc ’ s blunt summation of Chalara ash dieback , wrought by the Asian fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus .
Since its first discovery in Co Leitrim in 2012 , its airborne spores have had worst impact on young ash plantations , their leaves wilting and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ established in all counties in Ireland , but as yet spares large reaches of the western seaboard , saved by Atlantic winds .
In 2013 , the Department of Agriculture , Food and the Marine devised a “ reconstitution scheme ” to help in clearing affected plantations and planting them with alternative species .
By 2018 , this had cost some €5.8 million , for more than 1,000 hectares , but it stopped when scientists advised that eradication of ash dieback was no longer feasible .
After widespread damage throughout Europe , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of ash trees that are tolerant of the disease , passing on their tolerance genetically .
Actual resistance to the fungus has not been found in any common ash population .
And even naturally tolerant trees , left to themselves , could take many decades or even centuries to evolve any widespread , rural equilibrium .
Thus , say geneticists working with Ireland ’ s Council for Forest Research and Development ( Coford ) , the focus is on breeding from tolerant trees and spreading their progeny to forests and hedgerows over a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tolerant trees needs an environment where the pressure of disease is high and their stubborn health quite evident .
This is still unusual in Ireland , so most of the breeding programmes are in Europe .
However , Teagasc ’ s forestry researchers have had access to ash trees of widely varied Irish provenance already growing in six countries and planted for an earlier , unrelated trial .
They include 1,000 trees in Lithuania and 14,000 in the UK .
Using such material from Belgium , they have identified chemicals in the ash @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to dieback .
Two bark chemicals most strongly associated with tolerance belong to the family of coumarins , their sweet scent familiar from freshly mown hay .
Such molecular signals are now helping to seek out tolerant trees in Irish stands .
Dr Gerry Douglas , just retired from Teagasc ’ s breeding ash research , puts such trees at 1 to 2 per cent .
“ The best news , ” he says , “ is that this ‘ natural ’ resistance in ash is heritable , and also highly stable in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is different , as he points out , from the restorative breeding of disease-resistant elms , which involves introduction of new genes from Asian elm species .
The ash-breeding programme will need large nurseries to propagate trees by grafting and for production of cuttings for rooting .
A second stage begins with producing small amounts of seed from grafted trees grown in high polytunnels .
This needs controlled pollination of “ mother tree ” flowers from tolerant father trees .
Later , more seed can come from orchards of tolerant trees grown from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will take years , as Coford sets it out , perhaps as long as 20 .
But Gerry Douglas is confident that the programme will produce resistant ash seed “ for sprinkling along the hedgerows ” .

I could have looked up when kneeling to plant the little ash tree some 30-odd years ago. Then I might have considered the powerline high above me, strung from the transformer beyond the hedge to the pole beside the house.
But perhaps I just couldn’t imagine the ambition locked up in the sapling I was firming in.
This summer, as the tree’s topmost twigs reached up to embrace the wire, I began to dread the approach of early autumn storms. It was time to consult the ESB.
They’re jolly decent in these matters. If the offending tree is beyond the immediate domestic pole, they will, in good time, despatch a remedial team with a baby chainsaw on a very long pole.
READ MORE
This was, sadly, our second ash to come into conflict with technology. A tree planted closer to the house grew into a strong-muscled, shapely candelabra, beautiful in every season. But it came to obstruct the wireless beams by which we shared our broadband with neighbours. Its pollarding prompted final felling, to our mutual regret.
Meanwhile, the wayside ashes of the west stand as defiantly healthy emblems of their kind. Further east, and across the midlands, hedgerow ashes and forest plantations have been scarred by “the single most devastating forest pathogen ever to hit the postglacial woodlands of Ireland”. That was Teagasc’s blunt summation of Chalara ash dieback, wrought by the Asian fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus.
Airborne spores
Since its first discovery in Co Leitrim in 2012, its airborne spores have had worst impact on young ash plantations, their leaves wilting and blackening into death. It is now established in all counties in Ireland, but as yet spares large reaches of the western seaboard, saved by Atlantic winds.
In 2013, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine devised a “reconstitution scheme” to help in clearing affected plantations and planting them with alternative species. By 2018, this had cost some €5.8 million, for more than 1,000 hectares, but it stopped when scientists advised that eradication of ash dieback was no longer feasible.
After widespread damage throughout Europe, the research priority is finding the small minority of ash trees that are tolerant of the disease, passing on their tolerance genetically.
Actual resistance to the fungus has not been found in any common ash population. And even naturally tolerant trees, left to themselves, could take many decades or even centuries to evolve any widespread, rural equilibrium.
Thus, say geneticists working with Ireland’s Council for Forest Research and Development (Coford), the focus is on breeding from tolerant trees and spreading their progeny to forests and hedgerows over a much shorter time.
Two bark chemicals most strongly associated with tolerance belong to the family of coumarins, their sweet scent familiar from freshly mown hay
Even to identify tolerant trees needs an environment where the pressure of disease is high and their stubborn health quite evident. This is still unusual in Ireland, so most of the breeding programmes are in Europe.
However, Teagasc’s forestry researchers have had access to ash trees of widely varied Irish provenance already growing in six countries and planted for an earlier, unrelated trial. They include 1,000 trees in Lithuania and 14,000 in the UK. Using such material from Belgium ,they have identified chemicals in the ash that distinguish tolerant trees from those sensitive to dieback.
Two bark chemicals most strongly associated with tolerance belong to the family of coumarins, their sweet scent familiar from freshly mown hay. Such molecular signals are now helping to seek out tolerant trees in Irish stands.
Dr Gerry Douglas, just retired from Teagasc's breeding ash research, puts such trees at 1 to 2 per cent. "The best news," he says, "is that this 'natural' resistance in ash is heritable, and also highly stable in trees that are propagated vegetatively."
New genes
This is different, as he points out, from the restorative breeding of disease-resistant elms, which involves introduction of new genes from Asian elm species.
The ash-breeding programme will need large nurseries to propagate trees by grafting and for production of cuttings for rooting. A second stage begins with producing small amounts of seed from grafted trees grown in high polytunnels.
This needs controlled pollination of “mother tree” flowers from tolerant father trees. Later, more seed can come from orchards of tolerant trees grown from grafts and rooted cuttings.
All this will take years, as Coford sets it out, perhaps as long as 20. But Gerry Douglas is confident that the programme will produce resistant ash seed “for sprinkling along the hedgerows”.


theirishtimes--2020-08-08--Half of people in direct provision ‘unable’ to social distance

Half of people living in direct provision have been unable to social distance from other residents during the Covid-19 pandemic , while more than 40 per cent continue to share a room with a non-family member , according to new research seen by The Irish Times .
The Irish Refugee Council ’ s ( IRC ) Powerless report , which examines the experiences of direct provision residents during the pandemic , says asylum seekers are suffering “ fear and trepidation ” because of their “ inability to control ” their health and safety during the pandemic .
The call to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ compelling than ever ” in the context of the pandemic , the council says .
The new Government has committed to ending the system .
Two levels of safety standards have been created during the Covid-19 pandemic , according to IRC chief executive Nick Henderson .
“ One for the general public , where social distancing is encouraged , and another for people in residential settings such as direct provision , where sharing of intimate space is implicitly accepted.
” The study was carried out through an online survey made available to residents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 418 people – 5.4 per cent of people living in direct provision – from 38 direct provision centres and 22 emergency accommodation centres took part .
The IRC found 55 per cent of people surveyed felt unsafe due to the pandemic , while 50 per cent were unable to social distance themselves from other residents .
Some 42 per cent said they were sharing a room with a non-family member .
More than 15 per cent shared a room with three people and 5 per cent shared with four people .
One respondent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 11 others .
More than half of respondents said they shared a bathroom with non-family members and 53 per cent said they continued to eat in a communal dining area .
Nearly one-quarter said they did not have regular access to soap and hand sanitiser in their centre .
Respondents expressed concern about overcrowded living conditions .
One remarked : “ We are powerless , just sitting ducks waiting to die.
” A pregnant woman said she lived in “ constant fear of being infected ” as she shared a kitchen with more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they were concerned about the behaviour of fellow residents as some were acting irresponsibly .
Many complained about a lack of communication from managers about the spread of the virus , saying there was “ no visibility ” about the number of cases at their centre .
However , in a small number of cases , respondents said managers had been a source of support in recent months .
Respondents said some local communities presumed residents had Covid-19 because they lived in direct provision , while one respondent recalled having been described as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ took part in the survey said the closure of schools meant their children had to learn in overcrowded conditions and were left without a “ sense of normalcy ” in their lives , according to the report .
Of the 204 respondents who said they were employed , more than one-fifth worked in hospitals , other healthcare settings , or the care sector .
Those in direct provision who lost their jobs because of the pandemic were initially not eligible for the Covid-19 pandemic unemployment payment ( PUP ) .
In May , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ led by the IRC requested that asylum seekers , who currently receive €38.80 per week for an adult and €29.80 for children , receive an additional €20 per week during the pandemic .
The request was rejected by then minister for social protection Regina Doherty .
However , on Friday , Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys announced that direct provision residents would now be eligible for the PUP , which she said will be paid retrospectively to them from when a person was laid off .
Residents will also be able to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said the Minister .
This change in policy follows months of campaigning by support groups and the Taoiseach ’ s assertion earlier this month that direct provision residents be treated the same as any citizen in terms of social protection supports during the Covid-19 pandemic .
The IRC report also calls for a “ constructive ” internal inquiry into the Department of Justice ’ s handling of centres during the pandemic and requests that all people who are unsuccessful in their asylum application , but worked in healthcare during Covid-19 , be given @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The decision-making process for international protection applications should now restart to avoid further delays , it recommends .

A sign at the entrance to a direct provision centre in Co Kildare that suffered a Covid-19 outbreak. File photograph: Colin Keegan/Collins
Half of people living in direct provision have been unable to social distance from other residents during the Covid-19 pandemic, while more than 40 per cent continue to share a room with a non-family member, according to new research seen by The Irish Times.
The Irish Refugee Council’s (IRC) Powerless report, which examines the experiences of direct provision residents during the pandemic, says asylum seekers are suffering “fear and trepidation” because of their “inability to control” their health and safety during the pandemic.
The call to end direct provision has become “more compelling than ever” in the context of the pandemic, the council says. The new Government has committed to ending the system.
Two levels of safety standards have been created during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to IRC chief executive Nick Henderson. "One for the general public, where social distancing is encouraged, and another for people in residential settings such as direct provision, where sharing of intimate space is implicitly accepted."
READ MORE
The study was carried out through an online survey made available to residents between April and June 2020. Some 418 people – 5.4 per cent of people living in direct provision – from 38 direct provision centres and 22 emergency accommodation centres took part.
Sharing space
The IRC found 55 per cent of people surveyed felt unsafe due to the pandemic, while 50 per cent were unable to social distance themselves from other residents. Some 42 per cent said they were sharing a room with a non-family member.
More than 15 per cent shared a room with three people and 5 per cent shared with four people. One respondent said they were sharing a room with 11 others.
More than half of respondents said they shared a bathroom with non-family members and 53 per cent said they continued to eat in a communal dining area. Nearly one-quarter said they did not have regular access to soap and hand sanitiser in their centre.
Respondents expressed concern about overcrowded living conditions. One remarked: “We are powerless, just sitting ducks waiting to die.” A pregnant woman said she lived in “constant fear of being infected” as she shared a kitchen with more than 100 people.
Some participants said they were concerned about the behaviour of fellow residents as some were acting irresponsibly.
Many complained about a lack of communication from managers about the spread of the virus, saying there was “no visibility” about the number of cases at their centre. However, in a small number of cases, respondents said managers had been a source of support in recent months.
Local response
Respondents said some local communities presumed residents had Covid-19 because they lived in direct provision, while one respondent recalled having been described as “Covid people”.
Parents who took part in the survey said the closure of schools meant their children had to learn in overcrowded conditions and were left without a “sense of normalcy” in their lives, according to the report.
Of the 204 respondents who said they were employed, more than one-fifth worked in hospitals, other healthcare settings, or the care sector. Those in direct provision who lost their jobs because of the pandemic were initially not eligible for the Covid-19 pandemic unemployment payment (PUP).
In May, a letter signed by 40 organisations and led by the IRC requested that asylum seekers, who currently receive €38.80 per week for an adult and €29.80 for children, receive an additional €20 per week during the pandemic. The request was rejected by then minister for social protection Regina Doherty.
However, on Friday, Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys announced that direct provision residents would now be eligible for the PUP, which she said will be paid retrospectively to them from when a person was laid off. Residents will also be able to claim the Covid-19 illness benefit payment, said the Minister.
This change in policy follows months of campaigning by support groups and the Taoiseach’s assertion earlier this month that direct provision residents be treated the same as any citizen in terms of social protection supports during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The IRC report also calls for a “constructive” internal inquiry into the Department of Justice’s handling of centres during the pandemic and requests that all people who are unsuccessful in their asylum application, but worked in healthcare during Covid-19, be given permission to remain in the Republic. The decision-making process for international protection applications should now restart to avoid further delays, it recommends.


theirishtimes--2020-08-09--The MacCarthy family: Their father survived Dunkirk, Nagasaki and a torpedoed ship. Will their pub s

The MacCarthy family: Their father survived Dunkirk, Nagasaki and a torpedoed ship. Will their pub survive Covid-19?

In a room above MacCarthy ’ s bar in Castletownbere , Co Cork is a daily reminder that the world has survived worse travails than Covid-19 .
The ceremonial sword was given to Dr Aidan MacCarthy , who grew up above the pub , by a Japanese officer who had guarded him while MacCarthy was in a prisoner of war camp in Japan during the second World War .
MacCarthy and his fellow inmates had been forced to dig their own graves at the Mitsubishi factory in Nagasaki where they were working as labourers when an American B-29 bomber dropped @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after the first at Hiroshima .
In his own memoir , A Doctor ’ s War , MacCarthy recalled a “ blue flash , accompanied by a very bright magnesium-type flare .
Then came a frighteningly loud but rather flat explosion which was followed by a blast of hot air .
“ Bodies lay everywhere , some horribly mutilated by falling walls , girders and flying glass .
The rain was black - which frightened everybody , including the Japanese .
Not knowing until later anything at all about the effects of an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we had finally arrived at Judgement Day .
“ An angry God was devastating the Japanese for their sins - and mistakenly including us in the holocaust.
” Aidan MacCarthy was a RAF doctor who survived Nagasaki as he had survived the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940 .
He rescued the crew from a burning aircraft in 1941 at Honington air base in Suffolk , England where he was stationed and was awarded the George Medal for bravery .
A year later he was sent to north Africa and then to the Far @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Japanese at Java .
His prison ship was torpedoed by the Americans , and he spent 24 hours in the water before being rescued by another prison ship which took him to the Japanese mainland .
Only 30 of the 1,000 men on board the ship survived .
Then he was an eyewitness to Nagasaki , an event which paradoxically saved his life as the Japanese were getting ready to shoot Allied prisoners-of-war in revenge for Hiroshima.You couldn ’ t make his life up .
He died in 1995 at the age @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been in operation since 1860 and Adrienne and Nicola ( known as Niki ) are the fourth generation of the family to run it .
When the threat came that the pub would be sold out of the family after her uncle died in 1979 , Adrienne packed up her life where she was training as a nurse and moved to the westernmost fringes of County Cork with a view to staying six months to see if she could make it work .
Never in those 160 years has the bar been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been now during the coronavirus pandemic .
Niki says they are “ absolutely gutted ” not to be able to open up as planned on August 10th .
MacCarthy ’ s Bar is not a “ wet pub ” .
It sells food , but only between 11am and 4pm and the MacCarthy ’ s sisters concluded that it was not possible to open and then close again at 4pm every day .
“ We are not a gastro pub , we are a rural pub really .
A lot of the guys @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They don ’ t want to be lumbered with a €9 meal , ” Niki explained .
Like a lot of rural publicans they put in perspex screens and hand sanitisers .
They reconfigured the bar so there would be one way in and one way out .
They bought facemasks for all the 12 staff all at considerable expense .
“ It ’ s gone on for too long at this stage .
This week would be our main week of the year - it ’ s regatta week , ” says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back for that along with tourists .
We have had to sit inside and watch them milling around with nowhere to go.
” Niki says their feelings were ones of disappointment and anger when the Government announced for the second time that the pubs would not be reopening as a result of a spike in Covid-19 cases .
“ Our situation is very different to a pub in the middle of Temple Bar .
We are not talking about droves and droves of people .
Just because somebody has a house party in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ again .
It ’ s just not fair .
We aren ’ t in the same situation as gastropubs and sports bars in the city .
“ When we first closed , we didn ’ t anticipate it would be that long .
It was a bit of a novelty then , but the novelty has worn off now .
We need to get back at it.
” Still , her father ’ s travails during the second World War puts things in perspective .
This year marks the 25th anniversary of his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his life has increased in the years since he died .
His memoir A Doctor ’ s War first published in 1979 has since been republished .
There has been a well-received 2014 documentary on his life , A Doctor ’ s Sword , and a follow up book A Doctor ’ s Sword – How an Irish Doctor Survived War , Captivity and the Atomic Bomb by Bob Jackson .
In 2016 Prince Harry formally renamed a RAF facility as the MacCarthy Medical Centre at Honington .
Last week BBC Radio 4 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the actor Sean Bean .
There is also a Netflix biopic in the works , says Nikki , but she is sworn to secrecy about the details .
MacCarthy ’ s Bar was already a tourist destination after the publication of the surprise international bestseller McCarthy ’ s Bar by Pete McCarthy which was published in 2000 .
It featured the pub door on the front .
The “ a ” in MacCarthy was photoshopped out of the book to match the spelling of McCarthy ’ s name .
Now tourists come @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day ” , says Niki .
At least they did when the pub was open .
It was given to her father by Second Lieutenant Isao Kusuno , whom Aidan saved from a lynching by prisoners after the bomb was dropped in August 1945 .
While some have experienced tragedy as a result of Covid-19 and other serious illnesses , her father ’ s incredible life story has put the inconveniences of this time for most of the rest of us into perspective .
“ A few people have said to us that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It makes you wonder how he would have reacted to such a situation , ” he said .
“ I think he would have taken it in his stride and decided that it was just another thing to deal with .
He lived every day ( during the war ) seriously not knowing if he would wake up alive .
”

Dr Aidan MacCarthy, from Cork, of the RAF, who survived Dunkirk, the fall of Singapore, having his ship torpedoed and time in a POW camp, before being in Nagasaki on the day on the atomic bomb was dropped
In a room above MacCarthy's bar in Castletownbere, Co Cork is a daily reminder that the world has survived worse travails than Covid-19.
The ceremonial sword was given to Dr Aidan MacCarthy, who grew up above the pub, by a Japanese officer who had guarded him while MacCarthy was in a prisoner of war camp in Japan during the second World War.
MacCarthy and his fellow inmates had been forced to dig their own graves at the Mitsubishi factory in Nagasaki where they were working as labourers when an American B-29 bomber dropped the second atomic bomb just three days after the first at Hiroshima.
In his own memoir, A Doctor’s War, MacCarthy recalled a “blue flash, accompanied by a very bright magnesium-type flare. Then came a frighteningly loud but rather flat explosion which was followed by a blast of hot air.
READ MORE
“Bodies lay everywhere, some horribly mutilated by falling walls, girders and flying glass. The rain was black - which frightened everybody, including the Japanese. Not knowing until later anything at all about the effects of an atomic explosion, I seriously wondered whether we had finally arrived at Judgement Day.
“An angry God was devastating the Japanese for their sins - and mistakenly including us in the holocaust.”
Aidan MacCarthy was a RAF doctor who survived Nagasaki as he had survived the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940. He rescued the crew from a burning aircraft in 1941 at Honington air base in Suffolk, England where he was stationed and was awarded the George Medal for bravery.
A year later he was sent to north Africa and then to the Far East, where he was captured by the Japanese at Java. His prison ship was torpedoed by the Americans, and he spent 24 hours in the water before being rescued by another prison ship which took him to the Japanese mainland. Only 30 of the 1,000 men on board the ship survived.
Then he was an eyewitness to Nagasaki, an event which paradoxically saved his life as the Japanese were getting ready to shoot Allied prisoners-of-war in revenge for Hiroshima.You couldn’t make his life up. He died in 1995 at the age of 82.
Fourth generation
MacCarthy’s Bar has been in operation since 1860 and Adrienne and Nicola (known as Niki) are the fourth generation of the family to run it.
When the threat came that the pub would be sold out of the family after her uncle died in 1979, Adrienne packed up her life where she was training as a nurse and moved to the westernmost fringes of County Cork with a view to staying six months to see if she could make it work.
Never in those 160 years has the bar been shut for as long as it has been now during the coronavirus pandemic. Niki says they are “absolutely gutted” not to be able to open up as planned on August 10th.
MacCarthy’s Bar is not a “wet pub”. It sells food, but only between 11am and 4pm and the MacCarthy’s sisters concluded that it was not possible to open and then close again at 4pm every day.
“We are not a gastro pub, we are a rural pub really. A lot of the guys who come into us are regulars. They don’t want to be lumbered with a €9 meal,” Niki explained.
Like a lot of rural publicans they put in perspex screens and hand sanitisers. They reconfigured the bar so there would be one way in and one way out. They bought facemasks for all the 12 staff all at considerable expense.
“It’s gone on for too long at this stage. This week would be our main week of the year - it’s regatta week,” says Niki. “Thousands of people come back for that along with tourists. We have had to sit inside and watch them milling around with nowhere to go.”
‘This is not Temple Bar’
Niki says their feelings were ones of disappointment and anger when the Government announced for the second time that the pubs would not be reopening as a result of a spike in Covid-19 cases.
"Our situation is very different to a pub in the middle of Temple Bar. We are not talking about droves and droves of people. Just because somebody has a house party in Killarney means we can't open again. It's just not fair. We aren't in the same situation as gastropubs and sports bars in the city.
“When we first closed, we didn’t anticipate it would be that long. It was a bit of a novelty then, but the novelty has worn off now. We need to get back at it.”
Still, her father’s travails during the second World War puts things in perspective. This year marks the 25th anniversary of his death.
If anything, interest in his life has increased in the years since he died. His memoir A Doctor’s War first published in 1979 has since been republished.
There has been a well-received 2014 documentary on his life, A Doctor's Sword, and a follow up book A Doctor's Sword – How an Irish Doctor Survived War, Captivity and the Atomic Bomb by Bob Jackson.
Daughters of the late Dr Aidan MacCarthy from Castletownbere, Co Cork. Nicola and Adrienne MacCarthy, with the sword presented to Dr Aidan by Japanese 2nd Lieutenant Isao Kusuno at the premier of ‘A Doctors Sword’ in UCC. Photograph: Darragh Kane
In 2016 Prince Harry formally renamed a RAF facility as the MacCarthy Medical Centre at Honington. Last week BBC Radio 4 broadcast a radio documentary by MacCarthy narrated by the actor Sean Bean.
There is also a Netflix biopic in the works, says Nikki, but she is sworn to secrecy about the details.
MacCarthy’s Bar was already a tourist destination after the publication of the surprise international bestseller McCarthy’s Bar by Pete McCarthy which was published in 2000. It featured the pub door on the front. The “a” in MacCarthy was photoshopped out of the book to match the spelling of McCarthy’s name.
Now tourists come to see the sword "every single day", says Niki. At least they did when the pub was open. It was given to her father by Second Lieutenant Isao Kusuno, whom Aidan saved from a lynching by prisoners after the bomb was dropped in August 1945.
While some have experienced tragedy as a result of Covid-19 and other serious illnesses, her father’s incredible life story has put the inconveniences of this time for most of the rest of us into perspective.
“A few people have said to us that it could be a lot worse. It makes you wonder how he would have reacted to such a situation,” he said.
“I think he would have taken it in his stride and decided that it was just another thing to deal with. He lived every day (during the war) seriously not knowing if he would wake up alive.”


theirishtimes--2020-08-09--Three midlands meat plants with Covid-19 clusters defer reopening

Three of the four meat plants in the midlands where significant clusters of Covid-19 were found among the workforces have decided not to reopen tomorrow .
The Irish Dog Foods plant in Naas , Co Kildare , which shut after more than 30 Covid-19 cases were found , said in a statement on Sunday that it was deferring its reopening “ pending further guidance from Government and its agencies ” .
It comes after O ’ Brien ’ s Fine Foods , which runs the Brady ’ s Ham plant in Timahoe , Co Kildare , and Kildare Chilling , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ closed .
Last night Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said meat plants in the midlands , which had reported large clusters of Covid-19 , should not reopen tomorrow .
Mr Donnelly said the restrictions imposed on Kildare , Laois and Offaly were asking a lot of people and it would not be appropriate for these factories to be open during the two weeks of the lockdown .
O ’ Brien ’ s Fine Foods , where more than 80 of the 300-strong staff tested positive for Covid-19 , said normal operations at its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It also said a further round of employee testing will be conducted on days seven and 14 and it said only those employees who test negative and meet public health guidelines will return to work .
A spokeswoman for O ’ Brien ’ s Fine Foods , which runs the plant , said all close contacts of those infected have been asked to self-isolate and the factory was undergoing a deep clean .
O ’ Brien ’ s Fine Foods said all staff will continue to be paid in full .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would be tested every fortnight , while measures to cuts the risks created by staff travelling to work would be put in place , said the company .
Minister for Agriculture Dara Calleary on Friday said he intends to introduce regular Covid-19 testing for all 15,000 workers in meat processing plants in the State .
The immediate priority was to try to set up testing in the three counties , Kildare , Laois and Offaly , affected by the two-week lockdown and then extend it to other regions , he said .
Mr @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agencies in the coming days to work through what he described as the “ complex issues ” involved and ascertain testing capacity .
Mr Calleary also said he had no difficulty with unannounced inspections being conducted by the Health and Safety Authority .
“ My overriding concern is to allow those who work in ( plants ) and the local communities to have the confidence to feel fully safe , ” he said .
Responding to fears in the wake of a number of outbreaks in meat and meat processing plants , industry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) said they acted “ as a stark reminder of the persistent threat of Covid-19 ” .
A relentless effort and focus had to be maintained “ to keep the virus out , protect staff , while also keeping the fresh meat supply chain in operation ” , said MII , adding its members operated “ robust protocols ” .
Meat Industry Ireland on Friday met with Department of Agriculture officials , the acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn , and trade union representatives to review existing rules and consider additional actions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the track-and-trace process are critical , as is continuous clear communications with staff around all aspects of dealing with the Covid threat , ” the lobby group declared .
A “ very high proportion ” of workers who tested positive were asymptomatic , so did not display any of the known symptoms of the virus , “ contrary to what has been alleged in some quarters ” .
Meat plants would “ continue to be vigilant ” against Covid-19 , the lobby group added , and they would “ continue to work with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and will be guided by their advice ” .

The Kildare Chilling Company Meat Plant on the outskirts of Kildare Town, where there has been a significant outbreak of Covid-19 among employees. Photograph: Laura Hutton/The Irish Times
Three of the four meat plants in the midlands where significant clusters of Covid-19 were found among the workforces have decided not to reopen tomorrow.
The Irish Dog Foods plant in Naas, Co Kildare, which shut after more than 30 Covid-19 cases were found, said in a statement on Sunday that it was deferring its reopening "pending further guidance from Government and its agencies".
O'Brien's Fine Foods, which runs the Brady's Ham plant in Timahoe, Co Kildare, and Kildare Chilling, also confirmed that their factory would remain closed. The company announced they were suspending operations last Wednesday.
Last night Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said meat plants in the midlands, which had reported large clusters of Covid-19, should not reopen tomorrow.
READ MORE
Mr Donnelly said the restrictions imposed on Kildare, Laois and Offaly were asking a lot of people and it would not be appropriate for these factories to be open during the two weeks of the lockdown.
O’Brien’s Fine Foods, where more than 80 of the 300-strong staff tested positive for Covid-19, said normal operations at its plant will not resume until August 18th.
It also said a further round of employee testing will be conducted on days seven and 14 and it said only those employees who test negative and meet public health guidelines will return to work.
A spokeswoman for O’Brien’s Fine Foods, which runs the plant, said all close contacts of those infected have been asked to self-isolate and the factory was undergoing a deep clean.
Paid
O’Brien’s Fine Foods said all staff will continue to be paid in full.
The company said once it does reopen workers would be tested every fortnight, while measures to cuts the risks created by staff travelling to work would be put in place , said the company .
Minister for Agriculture Dara Calleary on Friday said he intends to introduce regular Covid-19 testing for all 15,000 workers in meat processing plants in the State.
The immediate priority was to try to set up testing in the three counties, Kildare, Laois and Offaly, affected by the two-week lockdown and then extend it to other regions, he said.
Mr Calleary will meet the HSE and other agencies in the coming days to work through what he described as the “complex issues” involved and ascertain testing capacity.
Mr Calleary also said he had no difficulty with unannounced inspections being conducted by the Health and Safety Authority. “My overriding concern is to allow those who work in (plants) and the local communities to have the confidence to feel fully safe,” he said.
Meat Industry Ireland
Responding to fears in the wake of a number of outbreaks in meat and meat processing plants, industry lobby group Meat Industry Ireland (MII) said they acted "as a stark reminder of the persistent threat of Covid-19".
A relentless effort and focus had to be maintained “to keep the virus out, protect staff, while also keeping the fresh meat supply chain in operation”, said MII, adding its members operated “robust protocols”.
Meat Industry Ireland on Friday met with Department of Agriculture officials, the acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn, and trade union representatives to review existing rules and consider additional actions.
“Speed of testing results and the track-and-trace process are critical, as is continuous clear communications with staff around all aspects of dealing with the Covid threat,” the lobby group declared.
A “very high proportion” of workers who tested positive were asymptomatic, so did not display any of the known symptoms of the virus, “contrary to what has been alleged in some quarters”.
Meat plants would “continue to be vigilant” against Covid-19, the lobby group added, and they would “continue to work with the Health Service Executive and other agencies, and will be guided by their advice”.


theirishtimes--2020-08-09--Gardaí investigate after man’s body found in Dublin house

Gardaí in Dublin are investigating the death of a man whose body was found in his house last night .
@ @ @ @ @ was found in a house on St Michael ’ s Road , Drumcondra , Dublin @ @ @ @ @ at around 11pm to calls that a number of men were attempting to break-in .
@ @ @ @ @ scene and the State Pathologist will carry out an assessment later this morning .
Anyone @ @ @ @ @ contact Mountjoy Garda station on ( 01 ) 666 8602 or the Garda Confidential Line @ @ @ @

Gardaí believe the remains of a middle-aged man found in a house in north Dublin on Saturday night might have lain undiscovered for some time.
An apparent break-in, or an attempt to gain entry for an attack, reported at the house by a number of men on Saturday night, was also being investigated.
Garda sources stressed the investigation into the death was still in its early stages, but initial indications suggested the man died before this weekend and possibly significantly before.
Gardaí believe the man was resident in the property where his body was found.
READ MORE
The remains of the man, aged about 50 years, were found at his home on St Michael’s Rd, Glasnevin, Dublin 9, after reports of what appeared to be a break-in attempt at the house by a number of men on Saturday night.
Gardaí from nearby Mountjoy Garda station responded to those calls and when they arrived found no sign of a break-in.
Gardaí responded at around 11pm to calls that a number of men were attempting to break-in. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw
The gardaí who responded to the call then examined the house and gained entry to it where they discovered the body.
Because it appeared as if the man had been dead for some time, the body was left at the scene overnight before an examination of the house by the Garda Technical Bureau on Sunday morning.
Garda sources said postmortem results would be required before they could determine the cause of death and whether it was as a result of foul play.
The same sources said when the cause of death was known it would help gardaí determine what , if any, links there were between the man’s death and reports of an attempted break-in at the property at about 11pm on Saturday.
If the time of death was confirmed as predating this weekend, sources said gardaí would try to determine if the dead man had recently been targeted in any way .
Reports of the attempted break-in by a number of men were being treated as credible by gardaí, who want to establish if any other similar incidents occurred recently that may be linked to the death.
Gardaí have asked anyone with information about the dead man or who may have seen anything at the house on Saturday night or at any time in recent days to contact Mountjoy Garda station on (01) 6668602.


theirishtimes--2020-08-10--Man whose remains lay undiscovered for 10 years to get family burial

A man whose remains lay undiscovered on public ground in south Dublin for almost a decade will receive a family burial after his distant relatives were traced .
The skeletal remains of Stephen Corrigan , who suffered from mental illness and had been homeless at times due to his condition , were discovered in April on a site off the Lower Rathmines Road , at Lissenfield .
No effort had been made to conceal the remains , which were found by men carrying out work in the area , and foul play was ruled out .
The dead man ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Corrigan , died aged 81 in November 2015 , not knowing what had happened to her son , who went missing in November 2011 , when he was 47 .
However , she gave the Garda a sample of her DNA before she died and when the remains were discovered they were confirmed as those of her son .
Mr Corrigan ’ s only known relatives when he died were his late mother and brother Edward , who was six years younger and who died in 2016 aged 46 .
A Garda appeal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not successful .
However , Finders International , a professional probate genealogist firm , saw the Garda appeal and made its own pro bono checks .
The company ’ s trawl quickly determined Mr Corrigan had a large number of relatives , though they had never met and were unaware of his existence .
Fr Brendan Corrigan , the parish priest in Kilbeggan , Co Westmeath , is a first cousin of Mr Corrigan ’ s mother and he told The Irish Times he was surprised when contacted about the case .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be buried with his mother and his brother , ” Fr Corrigan said .
He understood the Dublin City Coroner ’ s office would release the remains to the extended family for burial with his mother and brother once their grave in Dublin was identified .
He added Hanna Corrigan was of an older generation to most of the wider family and was not well known or closely linked to them .
He believed Ms Corrigan and her sons had lived around the North Circular Road area of Dublin .
At the time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ patient at The Weir Home on Cork Street , a residence where nursing and psychiatric care is provided for men .
Residents can come and go as they please and Mr Corrigan failed to return there on the day he went missing .

A man whose remains lay undiscovered on public ground in south Dublin for almost a decade will receive a family burial after his distant relatives were traced.
The skeletal remains of Stephen Corrigan, who suffered from mental illness and had been homeless at times due to his condition, were discovered in April on a site off the Lower Rathmines Road, at Lissenfield. No effort had been made to conceal the remains, which were found by men carrying out work in the area, and foul play was ruled out.
The dead man’s mother, Hanna ‘Anna’ Corrigan, died aged 81 in November 2015, not knowing what had happened to her son, who went missing in November 2011, when he was 47.
However, she gave the Garda a sample of her DNA before she died and when the remains were discovered they were confirmed as those of her son.
READ MORE
Mr Corrigan’s only known relatives when he died were his late mother and brother Edward, who was six years younger and who died in 2016 aged 46. A Garda appeal for other relatives to come forward was not successful.
However, Finders International, a professional probate genealogist firm, saw the Garda appeal and made its own pro bono checks. The company’s trawl quickly determined Mr Corrigan had a large number of relatives, though they had never met and were unaware of his existence.
Fr Brendan Corrigan, the parish priest in Kilbeggan, Co Westmeath, is a first cousin of Mr Corrigan’s mother and he told The Irish Times he was surprised when contacted about the case.
“Our wish now is that Stephen would be buried with his mother and his brother,” Fr Corrigan said.
He understood the Dublin City Coroner’s office would release the remains to the extended family for burial with his mother and brother once their grave in Dublin was identified.
He added Hanna Corrigan was of an older generation to most of the wider family and was not well known or closely linked to them. He believed Ms Corrigan and her sons had lived around the North Circular Road area of Dublin.
At the time he went missing Mr Corrigan was a patient at The Weir Home on Cork Street, a residence where nursing and psychiatric care is provided for men. Residents can come and go as they please and Mr Corrigan failed to return there on the day he went missing.