TORNADO SEEN IN MITCHELSTOWN

The torrential downpour that struck the Mitchelstown area just before 4pm this Wednesday evening, had shoppers scurrying for shelter. A number of people called The Avondhu, excited at having seen it in the sky to the south west over Mitchelstown.

Maria McCarthy took a photograph of the twister which she watched through her kitchen window ‘for quite some time’ and described it as being ‘in the area of the Texaco garage’. Unfortunately, the picture could not be developed in time for this week’s issue.

Amanda Donegan was in the Kildrum/Clonmel Road area at exactly 3.55pm when she saw the tornado forming.

“I would have thought it was more in the Kildorrery area. I watched it for about thirty seconds and then rang my son who was in SuperValu at the time. He rang me back just over a minute later which meant it lasted for almost two minutes.”

Amanda said the sky was a peculiar colour, ‘almost scary’ and said a second tornado started to take shape soon after.

“Had it formed fully, it would have been much bigger than the first, but it just seemed to evaporate back into the sky.” Luckily, there were no reports of any damage being done other than some flash flooding in places.

Records show that the maximum frequency of tornadoes in Ireland is during the summer months of July and August. However, significant tornadoes have also occurred during the winter months.

HOMECOMING QUEEN RELISHES FRIDAY HEADLINE SPOT

As Mallow to the west and Fermoy to the south cast a wary eye at the rising water levels of the Blackwater river, Mitchelstown experienced a different type of flood last Friday night, when a deluge of people suddenly descended on New Square for the much anticipated homecoming performance of Gemma Hayes.

While the square had been fairly busy on Friday night, the venue suddenly filled as 10.30 approached and the Ballyporeen singer-songwriter took to the stage to a warm welcome.

“I haven’t seen the square this full since the markets on Thursdays,” Gemma joked as she worked through an upbeat setlist of songs from her back catalogue, including songs from this summer’s well received album, ‘The Hollow Of Morning’.

Gemma was clearly thrilled with the welcome home she had received. “It was brilliant. I have to say I found myself more nervous for this show than I’ve been in a very long time. I think it’s because I could see a lot of familiar faces and that’s what freaked me out,” she told The Avondhu after the show, before revealing the dilemma she faced on how to approach this special gig.

“I was in two minds before I did the show. I thought should I try to second guess what people wanted or do what I do and hope to God they like it. So I went for the latter.” Gemma was full of praise for the festival and how far it had come in its incarnation as Indie-Pendence.

“I went to one of them (the previous Mitchelstown festivals), when Danni Minogue played. It’s so cool to have something like this here.” Gemma added that she plans to move home in the future to get back to her old routine in the locality.

“I’m going back up to Dublin, pack up all my gear and move home. I’ll come back into town and shop like I used to. I’m going to go into Clonmel and shop in Cullihan’s and I’m going to come back here and I’m going to shop in The Favourite,” she joked.

Judging by the reception on Friday night, Gemma Hayes will certainly be welcomed back to Ballyporeen.

THE COUNTDOWN STARTS FOR FERMOY’S GEAROID TOWEY

There is only one day left until the opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics (August 8 to August 24) and the countdown has begun for everyone who is an aficionado of the major sporting event, including Kilworth’s own rowing world champion Gearoid Towey, a member of Fermoy Rowing Club.

The rowing lightweight four category competition will start on Sunday, August 10th with the men’s teams taking part in one of the three organised 1st round heats between 4pm-4.30pm.

The heats are followed on Tuesday, August 12th by the men’s lightweight four repechage at 5pm–5.10pm. On Thursday, August 14th, it is down to the two semi-finals: Semi-final race 1 and semi-final race 2 between 4.10pm–4.30pm.

The B final will take place on Saturday, August 16th between 2.50pm–3.00pm, while the A final will take place on Sunday, August 17th between 4.10pm–4.20pm. It will be followed by the medal ceremony on the same day between 4.40pm–4.50pm.

We wish Gearoid and the entire Irish rowing team the best of luck. “May the road rise to meet you, May the wind be always at your back”, as an old Irish blessing says.

SCALE OF SHIPTON DEVELOPMENT REDUCED BY 50%

The revised application of the Shipton development for the former Fermoy mart site, shows the scale of the project being reduced to 50% of its original submitted design. This significant scaling down of the development has come at the expense of the initially proposed 7-screen cinema, offices and residential units.

Among the 38 concerns raised to the initial application by Fermoy Town Council - the planning authorities in this case - the main issues that stood out were the height of the building, which would have posed a problem for the neighbouring buildings, in terms of overshadowing; overlooking the traffic management issue that would have seriously challenged the town at peak hour time; the impact on the business of the main street retail shops.

Due to objections received from local residents and business owners in the area who were concerned that the big scale of the development, and especially its height, were going to impact on their surroundings, blocking their view and the sunlight, the developers brought forward a solution to the problem, which entailed the removal from the development of the cinema and the majority of the office and residential space. It is surely a disappointment for many, especially young people, who would have revealed in having a fancy 7-screen cinema.

The revised proposal states, ‘The applicant believes that there may be a potential market for a cinema in Fermoy and current good practice is to co-locate cinemas with retail developments, as there is a considerable synergy between them. However the mass of the cinema contributes to the visual impacts identified by the council and cannot reasonably be accommodated on the subject site without retaining the originally proposed height’.

It further states, ‘A suitable location for a cinema would be on the adjacent site, facing Courthouse Road. This would allow for a synergy with the retail proposal and generate evening and weekend activity in the town centre along a prominent street frontage’.

The reduction in scale, and especially of the omission of the majority of the offices and residential units, addresses the traffic management as well, an issue that the council felt very strongly about.

‘The reduction in the scale of the development results in a 25%-30% reduction in traffic flows during the evening peak periods. The significant reduction in the office element of the scheme removes any of the projected generated traffic from the morning peak’, the same study suggests.

The third main issue, the impact of the development on the main street retail shops is also considered in detail and the developers reach the following conclusion, ‘It is likely that the number and scale of retail units would have a positive impact on the existing town centre, rather than the negative impact as suggested by the planning authority.

There is likely to be additional investment in the town centre to compete with the new stores within the town. The reduction in the number of the lettable units from 37 to 30, as now proposed, as well as the reduction in overall retail space, will help to alleviate the planning authority’s concerns’.

These are only some of the matters that were considered and issued with responses. A decision on whether the revised project will be approved and implemented or otherwise, will be made by the end of September.

FERMOY ESCAPES THE RAGE OF THE BLACKWATER

With the Blackwater breaking its banks in Mallow on Friday, Fermoy was on full alert, all preparing for the worst, but the flood never came. The gardai were omnipresent on the streets from around 11am preparing for the flood which was expected to hit the town within hours. Cars were being removed from flood prone areas, roads were being closed and traffic was being directed in Pearse Square.

The rain had been relentless all week and the Blackwater became more swollen with every passing hour, but appeared to be even more beautiful and majestic in its rage.

Could it be preparing to teach old Fermoy town yet another lesson? That nature is all-powerful, and that we, people, have to submit to its whims. Locals and tourists who were crossing the bridge seemed to be lost in the spectacle as the river was preparing for its very receptive audience.

Other people still went about their business, mindless of all the fuss and commotion going on around them. To them, it could be nothing more than scaremongering. Maybe this newly anticipated flood was just one of the many they have already witnessed.

A spokesperson for the Fermoy garda station told The Avondhu the town had to brace itself for what was expected to be one of the biggest floods Fermoy has known. Mercifully Fermoy escaped the rage of the Blackwater, unlike Mallow which, suffered severe flooding.

Safety measures were put in place, in as such that the cars parked outside The Grand Hotel or near Donatello’s on Brian Boru Square were moved to various other locations.

Side streets that would lead to the areas near the banks of the river were sealed off and the gardai were hard at work trying to pass on good advice to the locals. The town was buzzing with activity. Who would come out unscathed this time, the old town or the old river, the locals asked themselves.

After a day and a night during which many thought that the town would very likely flood, the battle was won by old Fermoy town.

LOCAL DISCO PROMOTERS THREATEN MITCHELSTOWN PULL-OUT

Local youth disco promoters have threatened to pull out of hosting such events in Mitchelstown following incidents of underage drinking. Last Saturday night at the town hall two 15 year olds and one 13 year old attempted entry to the disco organised by MixMania Productions carrying alcohol.

“The first individual didn’t even make it to the front door as he had fallen and injured his head. His parents were subsequently contacted to collect him. The other two individuals, of whom one had to be taken to hospital, were not able to stand due to the amount they had consumed,” a letter from the disco promoters to The Avondhu revealed.

“We are on the verge of stopping the discos due to the serious nature of the three incidents. Parents, organisers, gardai and the teenagers alike are not to blame for this it is simply down to the individual or individuals that got these children (yes that’s all they are) the drink! So any one in suspicion, please do not hesitate to contact the local gardai.

"To all the parents, to avoid this type of behaviour your children need to be dropped at the gate of the Town Hall at 8pm and collected again at 12am. This is the only way these discos will continue,” Thomas Power of MixMania warned.