national

National News Briefs

BoI chief to update Oireachtas committee

The Chief Executive of Bank of Ireland will come before the Oireachtas Finance Committee later to update TDs and Senators on the most recent developments at the bank.

The financial institution, which is mostly owned by the Irish State, recently slashed services at 40 of its branches and politicians will today question what impact this may be having on bank operations, particularly lending.

Chairperson of the Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform Ciarán Lynch says: "I think what everybody wants to see is that the state's involvement with both AIB and Bank of Ireland and these banks can operate independently in a sustainable way that's not drawing on the taxpayer to keep them operating."
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Bomb disposal team make Athy device safe

An Army Bomb Disposal Team made safe a viable Improvised Explosive Device in Athy, Co Kildare last night.

The Defence Forces deployed a team to a residential area near the Carlow Road in Athy, following a request from the gardaí.

The area was cordoned off and some houses were evacuated during the operation.

The team found the IED near a vehicle, outside a house, when they arrived on the scene at 11.15pm. The device was made safe by means of controlled explosion.

The scene was declared safe at 1.20am and the team returned to base.
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Man in 60s dies following Galway collision

A man in his 60s has died after being hit by a car in County Galway.

It happened at Ballinahown in Inverin at 6.30pm yesterday evening.

The pedestrian was taken to University College Hospital Galway where he later died.

The stretch of road where the collision happened is closed for a forensic examination, and local diversions are in place.

Any witnesses to the incident are being asked to contact gardaí in Salthill.
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Emergency services receive 1,500 calls over Halloween

It has been a busy Halloween night for the country's fire and ambulance services.

Crews across Leinster attended 790 call outs between 6pm yesterday evening and this morning.

An estimated 1,500 were received in total.

Fire crews also came under fire with several incidents of stones being thrown at their vehicles as they attended emergencies in the Tallaght, Beaumont, Crumlin and Spencer Dock areas of Dublin - however no personnel were injured.

One of the emergencies in the Tallaght area involved a 26 year old woman who suffered facial injuries when something exploded in a bonfire. She has been taken to hospital in Tallaght.

Up to 300 ambulance callouts were received in the Dublin area.
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Aer Lingus to operate extra Dublin-New York service after storm

Aer Lingus will operate an additional service between Dublin and New York today in order to help customers who have been affected by cancellations because of Superstorm Sandy.

The additional flight will depart from Dublin airport at 1pm this afternoon.

Customers who had their flights cancelled are being asked to visit the website www.aerlingus.com and use the ''Manage Booking'' facility to book onto the extra flight.
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