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Galway Bay FM News Archives

The engineers at Fukushima may be dying for us as well

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Date Published: 24-Mar-2011

The news agenda rumbled onwards so noticeably at the weekend – the 24-hour news channels which had been putting out round-the-clock coverage of the awful tragedy of Japan, changed their focus to the war action in Libya.

Suddenly, we were getting those stock images once more of apparently surgical strikes by cruise missiles, the ‘Star Wars’ style images of the world’s most sophisticated aircraft roaring away from the decks of carriers. Why, they even broke out the stock footage of submarines launching those extraordinary missiles which seem to wobble around in the water briefly before coming flaming out of the waves.

On Sunday afternoon as Sky News went into ‘war mode’ I thought it can’t be long before we begin to see reporters ‘embedded’ with the UK forces, except that this time, it is unlikely we will see what they call ‘boots on the ground’. Those terms which reporters seem to love like ‘fire and forget missiles’ came into use all over the place.

However, the lessons of Afghanistan may have been learned. In other words, it’s grand to play ‘Star Wars’ on warships hundreds of miles away from the target, or in planes that fire their missiles from another country, but don’t get dragged into a ground war with the likes of Ghadaffi, or indeed The Taliban.

The remarkable change in the news agenda in a matter of hours was a disturbing reminder that the world does tend to move on from even the most dreadful events. Japan and its tragedy became item number two. I thought, how many now remember the shock and awe of watching the scenes from Haiti in the wake of its enormous earthquake?

In the case of Haiti, the sheer grinding poverty of the country meant that the wreckage we were seeing drifting by in extraordinary rivers was largely composed of tin roofs and rubbish from shanty towns . . . in Japan, it’s been made up of waves of cars, lorries, vans, fridges, houses, apartment blocks.

But, for this writer, the images from Japan that will survive in the mind’s eye when many others will have faded, will be those from the past week of the snow-covered wreckage of one of the most sophisticated and wealthiest countries in the world as it struggled to cope with a huge natural disaster in which it appears impossible to even count its dead.

The other thing from which it is hard to escape is the fact that the engineers are probably enduring fatal doses of radiation for us in that power station as well . . . for, even as they take on those massive doses of radiation in attempting to save the reactors from exploding and meltdown, they are saving the rest of the world as well.

 

When it comes to nuclear accidents in Japan, it isn’t just those living within a few hundred kilometres who are in danger. Many will remember that when Chernobyl happened all those years ago, there were distinctive traces of its nuclear signature picked up as far away from the epicentre of crisis as here in the west of Ireland. Yes, the mountains of Connemara also registered the distinctive signature of Chernobyl.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.

Galway Bay FM News Archives

Galway has country’s largest population of young people

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Date Published: 07-May-2013

Galway has a population of young people which is more than twice the national average.

According to information gathered by the Central Statistics Office, Galway’s population of 20 to 24 year olds is more than twice the national average.

The number of 25-34 year olds in Galway is also more than the norm nationally, with the two main colleges thought to be the main reason.

However immigration in Galway is much higher than in other areas at 19.4 percent, compared to the national average of 12 percent.

 

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Galway Bay FM News Archives

Call for direct donations to city charity shops

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Date Published: 07-May-2013

A city councillor is encouraging people to donate goods directly to charity shops.

It follows allegations of thefts from clothes banks in Galway and across the country in recent months.

However, cameras are in place at some clothes banks and surveillance is carried out by local authorities.

Speaking on Galway Talks, Councillor Neil McNeilis said the problem of theft from clothes banks is widespread.

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Galway Bay FM News Archives

Galway ‘Park and Ride’ could become permanent

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Date Published: 07-May-2013

A park ‘n’ ride scheme from Carnmore into Galway city could become a permanent service if there is public demand.

That’s according to the Chief Executive of Galway Chamber of Commerce, Michael Coyle.

The pilot scheme will begin at 7.20 next Monday morning, May 13th.

Motorists will be able to park cars at the airport carpark in Carnmore and avail of a bus transfer to Forster Street in the city.

Buses will depart every 20 minutes at peak times and every 30 minutes at offpeak times throughout the day, at a cost of 2 euro per journey.

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