The Limerick Blogger - latest Limerick news and Limerick events

US President John F. Kennedy on a meet and Greet at Limerick’s Greenpark Racecourse in 1963.(Limerick…A Stroll Down Memory Lane Vol. 3)

Secret papers released this week reveal that Gardai had received a threat to kill US President John F. Kennedy, just five months before he was shot in Dallas Texas.

One of three threats received in a telephone call to Gardai claimed that a bomb would be placed on an aircraft at Shannon Airport as the US President prepared to return to the states after his three day visit.

While this threat, and others, including a claim that a sniper would be waiting for Kennedy on his way from Dublin Airport to Aras An Uchterain, were treated as hoaxes, it was decided that almost half of the country’s Garda contingient would be stationed between Dublin Airport and the Phoenix Park.

In a letter to Department of Justice officials, Garda Commissioner Daniel Costigan said; “While any attempt on the life of the president is most unlikely, we cannot overlook the possibility of some lunatic, fanatical, Communist, Puerto Rican or some other such like person coming here to try to assassinate the president.�

It was also feared that British journalists would use the opportunity to rip the piss out of Ireland, should anything go wrong with the visit.

The article on the Limerick Blogger which appeared in this Weekend’s Limerick Leader. Click the above image to enlarge.

The above graphs are the visitor numbers to the Limerick Blogger in 2006. The green represents page loads and the blue represents unique visitors per day.

The County Edition of the Limerick leader reports today that a 14 year old boy is recovering in the Mid-Western Regional hospital after receiving several stab wounds at a house party on St. Stephen’s Night.

The boy received wounds to the body, arm and back, however Gardai say that these injuries were minor.

The incident happened at 0045 hrs outside a house on Ashe Avenue, Carew Park, onthe morning of 27th December.

Another house party in Ballinacurra Weston came to an abrupt halt after someone decided to shoot up the house it was taking place in.

This incident happened between 0045 on the morning of St. Stephen’s Day. No one was injured in the shooting incident.

An arson attack on the same house on Cliona Avenue occoured just over five hours later. This is also being investigated by Gardai.

A third teenager has been charged with the arson attack on the two Murray children last September.

The 16 year old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared before Limerick District Court at lunchtime today.

The court was told that this particular individual is alledged to have “kept guard” while the other two accused carried out the attack on the car which Gavin (4) and Millie (6) were sitting in.

The youth was released on bail on condition that he sign on at his local Garda station every day, obaserve a curfew between 2200 hrs and 0700 hrs, and is to have no contact with either the Murray family or his two co-accused.

He is due to apear before the court again on January 2, 2007.

Not much time to write on this at the minute, but more details can be found here.

A fire on Oliver Plunket Street in St. Mary’s Park completely destroyed one house and caused serious damage to an ajoining house yesterday afternoon.

The fire is said to have been caused accidentally. Three units of the Limerick Fire Brigade were involved in putting out the fire.