‘Irish in Kenya’ set for Tralee

THERE are exciting times ahead for the team at ‘Go Kerry’ later this month as they get ready to welcome and host the ‘100 Years of the Irish in Kenya’ exhibition.

Launching in the Meadowlands Hotel on the night of Friday Sseptember 22 at 7:30pm, the exhibition is an initiative of the newly reopened Embassy of Ireland in Kenya to commemorate, in a positive manner, the 1916 Rising.

Through a series of interviews, family documents and religious archives it attempts to capture the stories of the Irish in Kenya over the 100 years, and more, since 1916.

Following its launch in The Meadowlands, the exhibit will then move to the Kerry County Museum on Denny Street from October 5 to October 29 where it will be available for viewing from 11am to 4pm daily.

The event will be launched by Chairperson of the Irish Kenyan Society, Jack O’Regan, himself a native of Kerry. Jack will be travelling to Tralee with his wife Yolanda and 25 other Kenyans to help launch the event.

All are welcome to attend. AN EPA report listing the public water supplies most at risk includes 13 Kerry supplies – more than any other county.

The Kerry supplies serve over 90,000 people, including the Central Regional Lough Guitane supply, which serves more than 62,000 alone.

The latest update of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Remedial Action List (RAL) is a register of supplies with the most serious deficiencies and known to be most at risk.

Half of Kerry’s supplies – Caherdaniel, Castlecove, Kenmare, Lyranes, Mountain Stage, and Lough Guitane, the second biggest supply on the entire list – were included due to having inadequate treatment for the parasite Cryptosporidium.

Another five supplies – Barraduff, Kilgarvan, Lauragh, Shrone, and Ventry – were found to have elevated levels of Trihalomethanes, formed when water is treated with chlorine.

Listowel was included due to elevated levels of pesticides, while Caragh Lake did not make the E coli standard.

Actions proposed to treat the 13 supplies include upgrading water treatment plants (9). In the case of Barraduff, Lauragh, and Shrone, the proposal is to abandon the source of the supply and replace with the central regional supply. No proposal has yet been put forward for Listowel.

In January of 2016, there were 22 Kerry supplies on the list.

Launching the celebration of the Irish 100years in Kenya in the Meadowland Hotel,Tralee on Monday were from l - r: Joan O’Regan, Heather McIver (Sales & Marketing Meadowland Hotel, Tralee) Grace O’Donnell (Go Kerry) and Gillian Wharton.