More regional news in brief.
Judge rejects Donegal cases in Monaghan
A District Court judge who comes from Co Donegal has said he does not want any cases from Donegal to be listed in future for hearing in his assigned Monaghan-Cavan District Court area.
Judge Seán Michael McBride announced at a sitting of Carrickmacross District Court yesterday that he was not prepared to deal with any cases from Donegal which could be dealt with by a judge in that area.
He refused to deal with a case in which a Donegal man with an address at Raphoe was detained in custody for alleged Road Traffic Act offences and brought to the Co Monaghan courthouse.
Judge McBride told Garda Insp Fintan McTiernan of Carrickmacross that the alleged offence took place in the Letterkenny area. He said he was therefore remanding the man back to the next available court sitting in Co Donegal.
Family escapes house fire
A mother and two children escaped from a smoke-filled house in Co Clare early yesterday. The outbreak occurred at Clondrinagh, near Lissycasey.
Emergency services discovered the family members lying in the front garden when they arrived.
Fire crews grabbed oxygen cylinders and began treating the three who had been badly affected by the smoke and fumes. The woman (44), her daughter (17) and her son aged 12 were given first aid by fire personnel until ambulance crews arrived.
Mother died after taking drug
A mother of three who was prescribed an anti- inflammatory medication to treat arthritis in her hands died six weeks later from an adverse reaction to the drug, an inquest heard yesterday, writes Georgina O'Halloran.
The coroner, Dr Brian Farrell, said Mary Lordan died from an adverse drug reaction and recorded a verdict of death by misadventure. Her death was as a result of an unusual and rare complication of taking the drug Mesulid, one of a number of pain medications containing Nimesulide, the sale of which was suspended by the Irish Medicines Board on May 15th, 2007.
Ms Lordan (61), Prospect Avenue, Dunmanway, Co Cork, was admitted to the Bon Secours Hospital, Cork city on February 8th, 2007, just days after she stopped taking Mesulid, which was prescribed by her GP at the beginning of January.