Ireland's Eye: What's going on in the old sod this week

A look at news from around Ireland

Mayo News

Sisterly Births
THERE’S nothing like a little sisterly support, especially when going into hospital to give birth -- and for two sisters from Newry, this was never truer.

Olivia Strain and her sister Colleen Markey, both nine months pregnant, were both taken into Daisy

Hill Hospital in the early hours of Thursday with contractions.  Olivia was taken down to the delivery suite first and at 8:53 a.m. she gave birth to a boy, Callum Phelim Gerard Strain, weighing in at 7 pounds 11 ounces.

Just over three hours later her younger sister Colleen added another boy to the family when Alfie Anthony Eugene Pentony was delivered, weighing 6 pounds 9 ounces.

Olivia's husband Gerard said, "We're all over the moon, especially Callum's older sister Bethany.  The two babies are healthy and the two girls are doing great, so everyone's delighted."

Gerard explained how the coincidence started at 2 a.m. on Thursday morning when Olivia woke up saying she knew there was something wrong with Colleen.  Unbeknown to her at the time, Colleen's contractions had started and she was preparing to go into hospital.

Within minutes Olivia started having contractions and they left for Daisy Hill arriving at 4 a.m., only to meet Colleen who arrived two hours later.

Delighted grandma Margaret Markey said, "I am delighted, just thrilled to bits. The girls were always close but to give birth to two sons on the same morning in the same hospital is incredible.”

Newry Democrat

Dangerous Websites
A DONEGAL coroner has criticized the online culture of websites that detail alarming information on self harm and suicide methods, saying that “we can no longer bury our heads in the sand” on the issue.

Coroner John Cannon made his remarks at Letterkenny Coroners Court which heard the inquests of three deaths by suicide that occurred just weeks apart last December and January.

He said he has researched this topic recently, and his findings made him “so angry” such information was available and in some cases was goading people to harm themselves or die by suicide. He called for such material to be controlled.

“I don’t know the answer but it makes me so angry. I can’t over-emphasize it but it is there,” Cannon said.

“It is real and there is no point burying our heads in the sand. There should be controls on these websites.”

He said these sites targeted people who were “low and in the ebb of depression.”
Cannon said new findings showed there was a high level of death by suicide in both Donegal and Cork.

He also highlighted his concerns over the growing issue of depression.

He remarked that it crossed many age ranges, saying that “horrible episodes of depression” appeared to be “prevalent in young people.”

The inquests heard details of the deaths of two students in their early 20s and a 51-year-old man.

“This depression seems very difficult to understand,” he stated.

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Nster.com