logo
Monaghan community left reeling by loss of ‘totally devoted' family man following Co Armagh road crash

Monaghan community left reeling by loss of ‘totally devoted' family man following Co Armagh road crash

Sixty-two-year-old Paddy McDonald from Errybane, Castleblayney, Monaghan, died when his bicycle was involved in a collision with a car on the Monaghan Road in the Middletown area of Armagh shortly before 2:30pm on Friday.
Follow Independent Monaghan on Facebook
The popular Monaghan man was pronounced dead at the scene, prompting a PSNI investigation to kick into action.
The road was closed for a period of time as officers conducted inquiries and as senior police officials embarked on an appeal for potential eye witnesses to come forward.
In the midst of those efforts, tributes have been paid to the well-respected Castleblayney man, many of which have come from a community still reeling by the loss of one of its most endeared and inimitable of characters.
'Paddy was totally devoted to his precious mother Peggy and auntie Bridge,' wrote one local woman. 'They were so blessed to have such a caring son and nephew and Paddy will be so greatly missed.'
A death notice on RIP.ie told of how Paddy was remembered with love by his mother, Peggy and sister Marian, aunts Bridge, Kathleen, Ann and Josie, extended family, neighbours and friends.
Other tributes singled out the keen cyclist's penchant for the Louth Hunt where Paddy's love for the outdoors and warm persona were perhaps best exemplified.
'Paddy was a great follower of Louth Hunt and a true gentleman, he will be greatly missed by all who knew him,' a further tribute read from a Co Louth based friend.
But it was perhaps the flood of heart-rending testimonies that came from several neighbours and friends of Paddy's in his home town, which shone the spotlight on a man and personality who was admired by all who knew him.
'He will be greatly missed around the town of Castleblayney,' noted one local couple, soundings which were echoed by another local man who described his late friend as 'one of life's true gentlemen'.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Opposition must be wary of slating Trump's Washington DC crackdown
Opposition must be wary of slating Trump's Washington DC crackdown

Irish Times

time2 hours ago

  • Irish Times

Opposition must be wary of slating Trump's Washington DC crackdown

My sister is having a bad summer. Even as I'm typing this, Peggy is at [Washington] DC police headquarters. We had dinner in Georgetown recently and when we came back to my house, where her car was parked, she was short a Buick. Two polite officers who responded to our call said they could do little, amid a rash of brazen car thefts by teenagers. READ MORE One officer said that even if they saw the perp driving her car, they could not chase him because of laws passed by the DC council. Kids – some too young to drive legally – can just hot-wire cars to go home. Two 15-year-olds are charged in a carjacking attack on a former DOGE [department of government efficiency] employee who helped set off US president Donald Trump 's crusade on crime in the district. The council has been notoriously lax toward juvenile offenders. Peggy had always loved that Buick, which she bought because Peyton Manning was the pitchman. We figured we'd never see it again. The next morning, though, an officer from Prince George's County, a working-class Maryland suburb, banged on her door. Her car was found in a park, running and nearly out of gas. When she collected it, after paying a $215 (€214) towing charge, she found an odoriferous collection: half-eaten pizza, soda cans, fast-food wrappers, a used condom and a couple of debit cards. She called police to tell them about the debit cards, thinking they could help trace the thieves. (Our dad, after all, was a DC cop.) But officers said to throw them away, noting that the cardholders had probably already gotten new ones. Peggy got the car detailed and celebrated its return by going shopping at Bloomingdale's. When she got back to her parking space, someone had T-boned the poor Buick [collided with the car]. [ Genteel streets of Washington's Georgetown meet national guard in Trump's crime crackdown Opens in new window ] Then, icing on the cake, she got more than $1,800 worth of speed-camera tickets that the car thieves had racked up going 70 in 25mph (40km/h) zones, and some for running red lights. One ticket revealed that the car was stolen just after she got out of it, at 7pm, still light outside. For all we know, the thieves watched her get out. She had to go down to headquarters on Friday to get the police report so she could appeal the tickets. It's hardly the most heinous crime, but you hear a lot about Washingtonians and their personal experiences of being preyed upon. City officials and many liberal residents are outraged about Trump's painting the district as a hellscape and flooding the zone with law enforcement and troops. Protesters around town held up signs reading 'Fascists' and a department of justice employee (now fired) threw a Subway sandwich at an officer and was charged with assault. It's ridiculous to drag FBI agents from their desks to be cops on the beat. And the tableau of national guard troops – even unarmed – raises the spectre of martial law being normalised and weaponised. (Armed and masked border patrol agents showing up at a Gavin Newsom gerrymandering speech in Los Angeles was disturbing.) It is also true that many district residents are secretly glad to see more uniforms. No matter what statistics say, they don't feel safe. I've always been hypervigilant. My mom, the wife of a policeman, passed down a healthy paranoia. She drove me to move into my dorm at Catholic University with a butcher knife on the seat between us. She gave me a Chinese letter opener with written instructions on how to find the jugular. At Christmas, there was always a can of pepper spray or a whistle among the presents. I find myself packing pepper spray again. I feel more wary walking around the city. It's disturbing to ask someone to unlock the Claritin at CVS because the police don't lock up the smash-and-grabbers. Drugstores, as Bill Maher said, have become a 'zoo for teeth-whitening strips'. Trump is playing the saviour on crime when he's the biggest scofflaw [law breaker] in town – first inciting the mob on January 6th and then pardoning felons who broke into the Capitol and beat up police officers. Elie Honig, a CNN legal analyst and author of the forthcoming book, When You Come at the King: Inside DOJ's Pursuit of the President, From Nixon to Trump, summed up the dilemma. 'Yes, Trump is hypocritical and scattershot on public safety,' he told me. 'And yes, he's likely doing this as a flex. But he happens to be within the law here and he happens to be right.' [ Trump sends troops into Washington DC: distraction tactic or part of wider policy? Opens in new window ] While the district's homicide rate has fallen, it's almost as high as New York City's at its most dangerous, in 1990. In the Atlantic, Michael Powell noted that the reality of crime is grimmest in Wards 7 and 8, the disadvantaged, majority-Black neighbourhoods where more than half of the district's homicides occurred last year. 'I have no doubt that Trump enjoys targeting Democratic-controlled cities for embarrassment,' Powell writes. 'I also have little doubt that a mother in Ward 8 might draw comfort from a National Guard soldier standing watch near her child's school.' The diva of distraction is putting on a show. ( They're eating the cats and the dogs!) But progressives should not fall into Trump's trap and downplay crime, once more getting on the wrong side of an inflammatory issue. As with inflation, they should remember that personal experiences can count more than sanguine statistics. Even if Trump is being diabolical, Democrats should not pretend that everything is fine here. Because it's not. This article originally appeared in The New York Times .

Councillor blames people 'fuelled by conspiracies' after latest spate of attacks on Belfast 5G masts
Councillor blames people 'fuelled by conspiracies' after latest spate of attacks on Belfast 5G masts

Irish Post

time5 hours ago

  • Irish Post

Councillor blames people 'fuelled by conspiracies' after latest spate of attacks on Belfast 5G masts

A SINN FÉIN councillor has blamed people who are 'fuelled by conspiracies' for another spate of attacks on 5G masts in Belfast. Ciaran Beattie was speaking after a mast was set alight in the Beechmount area of west Belfast in the early hours of Saturday morning, the third such fire in as many days. Police have appealed for information as they warn of the dangers to those carrying out the attacks as well as the risks posed to those affected. On Wednesday evening, a mast was set on fire in the Annadale Embankment area of south Belfast in an incident police are treating as arson. The following evening, a mast was targeted in the Glen Road area of west Belfast before the latest fire in Beechmount. 'Lives could be lost' "These vital pieces of infrastructure keep thousands of homes, businesses and public services connected across our city," said Councillor Beattie. "The campaign against 5G masts, driven by a small minority and fuelled by conspiracies, must end. "Anyone with information should contact the PSNI. Those responsible must face the full force of the law." Party colleague Councillor Ronan McLaughlin warned that the ongoing attacks could cost lives. Speaking after Thursday's fire, he said: "That these arsonists feel comfortable carrying out these acts in broad daylight on a main road is deeply concerning, and is an indictment of the lack of action taken to date. "With poor connectivity now common in west Belfast, there is a real risk lives could be lost because of weak phone signal. "It's time for those involved to face justice and be taken off our streets." Hospitals affected Police have warned that some of the damage caused has led to hospitals experiencing communication difficulties in contacting patients and managing critical on-call arrangements. They added that vulnerable members of the public are being left in a position where they are unable to make emergency calls or contact family. Speaking after the latest fire, Detective Inspector Wilson of the PSNI said they were treating the 'extremely reckless' attack as arson. "This is just one of a number of 5G masts that have been set on fire recently and I cannot emphasise enough the dangers of lighting fire to electrical equipment," he said. "This is extremely reckless, and those responsible are putting themselves and members of the public at serious risk."

Man arrested over fatal hit-and-run in Co Antrim released on bail
Man arrested over fatal hit-and-run in Co Antrim released on bail

Irish Times

time6 hours ago

  • Irish Times

Man arrested over fatal hit-and-run in Co Antrim released on bail

A man who was arrested following a fatal hit-and-run collision in Co Antrim has been released on bail as police continue inquiries. A man in his 50s was killed and a woman in her 40s was taken to hospital after being hit by a car in the Ballyeaston Road area of Ballyclare on Friday night. Police said they had received reports the car involved allegedly failed to stop at the scene after striking the two pedestrians. The woman was treated for injuries not believed to be life threatening. READ MORE A man had been arrested in connection with the collision but a Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) spokesman on Sunday said he been 'released on police bail to allow for further inquiries'. The PSNI appealed for witnesses to get in touch with the case reference number 1771 15/08/25.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store