Thurles Information

Five Individuals Arrested Following Upperchurch Serious Assalt last June.

Five men are understood to have been arrested today, in relation to the serious assault of a teenager, on Saturday 27th June last, in the rural Village of Upperchurch, near Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

Four of the men arrested are all understood to be aged in their 20s while one is aged in his teens. All are currently being detained in a number of Tipperary Garda stations.

The victim had been rushed to Cork University Hospital suffering from serious injuries.

Gardaí continue to appeal to road users, latter who may been travelling in the Upperchurch Village area between the hours of 11:00pm on Sunday June 27th and 12.30am on Monday June 28th, to make immediate contact with them, particularly if they hold dashcam or other video footage.

Any person with information can contact Thurles Garda Station Tel: 0504 25100 or the Garda Confidential Line Tel: 1800 666 111.

Mikey Ryan Learns True Reason For Emergence Of “Checkpoint Charlie” In Thurles.

“With TDs, Lowry and Cahill, constantly leaking how government departments are going to spend our money; isn’t it a shame we don’t manufacture anything here in Thurles any more”, said Mikey Ryan.

He had followed me into John Lacey’s Butchers Shop, on Friar Street, Thurles; both of us having been sent out with the instruction not to return, if we had not acquired a nice piece of round roast for the Sunday dinner.

“You know” says he, “I just bought a TV in that new Lidl place on Slievenamon Road yesterday and it said on the label, “Built-in Antenna”. “Now”, he continued, “since you studied geography up in the Christian Brothers later than me, tell me, in the name of God, where I can find ‘Antenna’ on the world map?

Anxious to change the subject, I winked at John replying, “Probably China, where they make all those other smart TV’s and doggy computers”.

“Did you know”, said Mikey, “a priest told me once that the oldest known computer was owned by Adam and the wife Eve? It was the Apple brand, with very limited memory; just one byte, but when his wife switched it on within minutes the world feckin became involved in the couture business, sewing fig leaves together, to make topless bikini’s.

“I see a computer-like contraption in a wire cage, at the entrance to that new car-park on Slievenamon road”, said I, again trying to change Mikey’s idiotic conversation.

“You mean “Checkpoint Charlie”, said Mikey, “with those auto arm barriers aimed at the sky and not a height restrictor in sight”.

“I reckon it could be a Thurles symbol of a future ‘Cold War’ all right, if Tipperary County Council and those local Municipal District Councillors, fail to halt the destruction of our town centre”, said I.

“Why was the original German Checkpoint Charlie built anyway”, quizzed Mikey.

“Ah sure everone knows, for almost 30 years until 1989, didn’t it stop the East German brain drain, all anxious to emigrate or defect westward, from East Berlin into West Berlin”, said I.

“Oh Right”, said Mikey, “I think I see what you’re saying; so this Thurles Checkpoint Charlie could be an attempt by Thurles Councillors and Thurles Chamber of Commerce to prevent smart shopkeepers and local consumers from defecting from Liberty Square, to benefit from the free parking available in the new town centre now at Lidl and Thurles Shopping Centre on Slievenamon Road”.

“I wouldn’t be at all feckin surprised”, said I , “to see our local Councillors out in that new ‘Checkpoint Charlie‘ car-park, letting the air out of car tyres, and blocking exhaust pipes with spuds, in what they would see as a positive effort to keep footfall on Liberty Square”.

“Listen, I’ve got to run”, said I, “Sure Pat Hayes, will have ‘The Arch Bar’ open again on Monday week July 26th next, please God, so with all our vaccine jabs got, no doubt we will run into each other very shortly again, for an auld chin-wag.

Liberty Square, Thurles, Co. Tipperary – So what’s the Plan?

“Fail to plan and you plan to fail”

The €9 million plus rejuvenation of Liberty Square, Thurles is surely be welcomed. Improvements have been made both below ground and above ground, and most people will agree that the lighting fixtures and granite pavement choices for the square are aesthetically pleasing.

Nevertheless, the persistent presence of a maze of barricades, coupled with the disappearance of beloved trees and the apparent narrowing of the roadways, has prompted quite a lot of head scratching, eyebrow raising and questioning among locals of late.

**With 4 traffic lanes reduced to 2, in Liberty SquareThurles ;** [**See HERE]** **how will ordinary street traffic pull out of the way, to avoid emergency vehicles, latter responding to any emergency incident. *e.g. Ambulance / Doctor / Fire Brigade services*?**
*Pic: G. Willoughby*

Here are just some of the questions being asked by our readers and Thurles residents.

(1) When will the rejuvenation project actually finish? Rumours abound, but at best it is estimated to be possibly March/April 2022 and at worst it could be July/August 2022.

(2) As the pedestrian areas on Liberty Square expand and increase while road space decreases, will there actually be sufficient space for ordinary traffic to pull over to avoid emergency vehicles, e.g. ambulances and fire engines, latter responding to emergency incidents, not to mention the ability of 20 wheeler delivery trucks, to pass, travelling in different directions? [See picture above.]

(3) If plans are being aimed to deter traffic and attract pedestrians, what impact will this have on our surrounding streets and roads?

(4) Having removed our healthy trees in an act of what can only be described as sheer savagery, are there any plans to replant same?

(5) We have beautiful pavements and an abundance of pedestrian space, but what is going to be done to get foot fall on these footpaths?

(6) What plans are in place to support and stimulate the Liberty Square economy?

Finding the answers to these questions is proving difficult based on current plans.

Although limited consultations have taken place with local residents, business owners and other interested parties, same appear to be little more than token in nature with none of the submissions by residents being implemented.

Indeed, it would appear that a final version of the plan for Liberty Square’s rejuvenation has yet to be released to the public. Some locals worry that the absence of a final plan and completion date may be indicative of inadequate planning. As the saying goes “fail to plan and you plan to fail”. Let’s hope that this isn’t the case.

We could all do without the continued wastage of public time and money, as was experienced with the planning on the Clongour Road and Slievenamon Road Junction.

2,077 Confirmed Today With Covid Virus On Island Of Ireland

By today, more than 1.3 million emails and letters containing the EU Digital Covid Certificate have now been issued to people who have been fully vaccinated; as the Dáil passed Government legislation on the reopening of indoor hospitality. This now passed legislation is accepted by the majority of Irish citizens as being both a sensible and a balanced approach by our government.

An Tánaiste Mr Leo Varadkar has stated that the Government is targeting Monday July 26th as the date for the reopening of indoor hospitality, when those fully vaccinated persons will be able to go indoors to pubs and restaurants. Mr Varadkar also warned that presently there were “reasons for real concerns and caution” as Delta variant contamination begins to surge.

The Irish Chief Medical Officer Dr. Tony Holohan has advised parents that it would be safer not to bring children into indoor dining settings, warning that this scenario he regards as “responsible public health advice”, in the case of those not yet vaccinated.

Speaking at a National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) briefing, Dr. Holohan stated that for those who wish to venture out with their children, “dining outdoors is still possible”.

Primarily, with 5% of Covid cases now involving fully vaccinated people, it is and will remain all about trusting people, while carefully checking the odds, before deciding to do what is right.

Today the Department of Health has reported 994 new cases of Covid-19 here in our republic. There are 80 patients hospitalised with the disease; of which 22 patients are in ICU, (two more than yesterday). Our death toll remains at 5,018.

Some 70% of the adult population have had at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine while just 60% of adult persons are now fully vaccinated.

Over 20,000 Covid tests are being conducted each day, with more travel cases identified, with persons coming from holiday destinations including Spain, Portugal and the UK.

Alas, another 1,083 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Northern Ireland as of this Thursday afternoon, compared to 636 cases in the previous 24-hour period.

This brings the total number of cases on our emerald isle to 2,077 confirmed cases.

Please do continue to wear your face coverings and to socially distance. The latter has proven to have significantly limited the spread of COVID-19 in the past. Stay Safe.

Death Of Sean Barnaville, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

It was with the deepest regret that we learned of the death of Mr Sean Barnaville, Fennor Gortnahoe, Thurles, Co. Tipperary and formerly of Urlingford, Co. Kilkenny.

Predeceased by his sisters Mollie and Peggy; Mr Barnaville passed away peacefully at his home in London.
His passing is most deeply regretted by his brothers Pat, Murt, Noel and Billy, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, grand nieces, grand nephews, extended relatives, neighbours and a wide circle of friends.

Requiescat in Pace.

Funeral Arrangements.

Private Cremation has already taken place in London.

The earthly remains of Mr Barnaville will repose for Requiem Mass at 2:00pm on Saturday afternoon next, July 17th, in the Church of the Sacred Heart, Gortnahoe, Thurles, followed by the interment of his ashes in the nearby Good Shepherd Cemetery, Gortnahoe, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.

[NB: Due to Public Health Guidelines, regarding C-19 virus restrictions; those attending (limited to 50 mourners) will continue to observe strict adherence to social distancing, face covering and the refraining from handshaking.]

The extended Barnaville family wish to express their appreciation for your understanding at this difficult time and have made arrangements for those wishing to send messages of condolence, to use the link shown HERE.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.