Other NI News In Brief

Calendar Girls Lift Winter Gloom

The Ulster Cancer Foundation set pulses racing at Stormont yesterday with the official launch of their Man Alive! Calendar 2009. Pictured are Ian Paisley Jnr, who sponsored the event, with Alison Campbell and some of her agency's models who feature in the calendar. The Man Alive! Calendar includes month by month tips to improve men's health, as well as glamorous pictures of local models to brighten it up as well.

Bangor Sex Attack Probed

A 20-year-old was sexually attacked at the weekend, although details were only made public yesterday. It happened off the West Circular Road in Bangor sometime during the early hours of Sunday. An area close to a care home, near the Kilcooley estate, was cordoned off for a time as police examined the scene. An investigation into the alleged attack is continuing.

Laser 'Attacks' Alert

It has been revealed that at least five attempts have been made to dazzle pilots with laser pointers in the skies over Northern Ireland during the past six months. The most serious incident was on 4 August, when the captain of a Boeing 737 was hit in the eye with a laser as he made his approach to George Belfast City Airport.

Blaze School To Reopen

A primary school which was forced to close its doors yesterday after a weekend arson attack damaged the kitchen and dining room is to reopen today. Presentation Primary has no electricity or heating after the building's dining room and kitchens were damaged by water and smoke during the blaze. The school's Principal Yvonne Mulholland said pupils should be able to return on Tuesday after work was undertaken yesterday to repair heating and power systems after the arson attack which saw firefighters tackling the blaze at Presentation Primary School in Portadown around 10pm on Saturday. Two appliances were dispatched and when fire crews got to the school they discovered the fire was at a well developed stage.

Church Windows Targeted

Vandals have smashed a stained glass memorial window in a church in County Down. The window was broken and several doors were also smashed in the attack at Groomsport Church of Ireland parish church on Sunday evening.

Bumper Sales On Border

Traffic was 'bumper-to-bumper' at the weekend as shoppers poured into border areas and descended on masse on shops. Yesterday, NI Finance Minister Nigel Dodds said the huge influx of shoppers from the Republic provided a welcome boost for the Northern Ireland economy after it emerged that southern bargain hunters have been snapping up goods costing up to almost a third less than in the south - and that was even before this week's 2.5% cut in VAT. It was another boom weekend for traders in border towns such as Newry, with bargain hunters from the south gridlocking the roads heading north.

International 'How To' Event Is Launched

The University of Ulster's School of Communication has unveiled a global best-practice programme. It is taking place on Friday December 5 (at Belfast's Stormont Hotel) and is titled DIVA - 'Distinguished International Visitors' Address. This is part of a three-year programme that invites global experts to share essential 'How To' knowledge with Northern Ireland's business leaders who want to enhance their local, regional and international communications skills. The free inaugural DIVA event involves a speech and audience question and answer session on the importance of corporate communications. Northern Ireland-born, Visiting Professor Tony R. Culley-Foster, President of CFCO International –The Leading Representative of UK-US Companies in Washington DC will host the first event in the series.

(BMcC)