Northern Ireland News - Other NI News In Brief

19 November 2009

Other NI News In Brief

UCF In Conference

The Ulster Cancer Foundation (UCF), in association with the National Association of Laryngectomy Clubs, has hosted a conference for laryngectomy patients, carers and health professionals focusing on quality of life and practical aspects of living with the disease. Pictured are Liz Atkinson, Head of Care Services, UCF guest speaker, Dr Simon J Hughes, Consultant in Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Royal Victoria Hospital who explained imaging and diagnostics and Ivor Smith, President, National Association of Laryngectomee Clubs.

Armagh Device 'Killer'

A bomb made safe by the Army in Armagh was designed to kill police officers, a senior officer has said. The alert began after a report late on Wednesday night that a suspicious device had been left in the Friary Road area. District Commander Chief Superintendent Alasdair Robinson said it was "a viable explosive device capable of causing serious injury or indeed death". A PSNI spokesman said they responded on Wednesday night to a report that a suspicious device had been left in the Friary Road area which was closed to traffic and evacuated.

DVD Records Victims

A victims' group is setting up a high-tech archive featuring the voices of 150 victims and survivors of Northern Ireland's Troubles. Project Capabe aims to record the stories of a cross section of people who suffered in violence on DVD. It has been set up by victims' group Fair which is run by William Frazer. Capable - the Conflict Archives Project and Borderlands Experience - is being funded by the European Union with Peace III money and has a budget of £110,000.

999 Let Down

An ambulance was sent 16 miles to help a pregnant woman injured in a car crash which took place just outside a Londonderry hospital, it has emerged. The incident happened outside Altnagelvin hospital in October, but details have only just been released. An ambulance service spokesman said an ambulance was sent from Limavady because Derry ambulances were on emergency calls.

Commercial TV Hit

UTV, the Belfast-based media group, has said the recession is continuing to hit its business. A statement covering the 10 months to the end of October 2009 has reported that revenues are down 8%, compared to the same period last year. The decline was greatest at its TV business where revenues fell by 21%. The company said the rate of decline is now easing and it expects profits for 2009 to be broadly in line with market expectations and added that advertising bookings remain "extremely short-term" which means the company is cautious about its prospects for 2010. It is working on the assumption that general weakness in advertising revenues will be mitigated by an advertising boost at its TalkSport and Sport magazine businesses, due to the 2010 World Cup.

Records Office Shuts

The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) has issued a reminder that it will be closed to the public from Monday 23 November until Friday 11 December 2009 inclusive. During this annual stocktaking period there will be no access for members of the public to the Balmoral Avenue site and documents will not be available for consultation. However, all of PRONI's online records will be available and the office will continue to provide a correspondence and telephone enquiry service and will address FOI and urgent legal enquiries. The closure takes place every year in order to update the storage inventory, to identify documents that are in need of repair, and to re-arrange and rationalise storage to provide space for new archives.

(BMcC/GK)

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