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2 days ago
- eNCA
Tourist coins pose giant problem at N. Ireland's famous causeway site
DUBLIN - Northern Ireland's Giant Causeway draws close to one million visitors a year but their habit of wedging tiny coins in cracks between the rocks -- to bring love or luck -- is damaging the world-famous wonder. Now authorities are urging tourists to keep their coins in their pockets to preserve the spectacular landscape. Some 40,000 columns mark the causeway, Northern Ireland's first UNESCO World Heritage Site. Geologists say the natural phenomenon was created by an outpouring of basalt lava 60 million years ago. Legend has it that the causeway was formed by Irish giant Finn McCool. AFP | PAUL FAITH In recent decades, visitors have pushed thousands of coins into fissures in the rocks. The gesture is "a token of love or luck", according to Cliff Henry, the causeway's nature engagement officer. But the coins rapidly corrode and expand, causing the basalt to flake and leaving "unsightly" rust-coloured streaks, Henry told AFP. He pointed to streaks on a rock and gingerly prised out a US cent with a set of keys. "We get a lot of euros and dollar cents. But coins from literally all over the world -- any currency you can think of, pretty much -- we have had it here," he said. AFP | PAUL FAITH A report by the British Geological Survey in 2021 revealed that the coins were "doing some serious damage" and something had to be done about it, he noted. Signs are now in place around the site appealing to tourists to "leave no trace". - 'Distressed' - "Once some visitors see other people have done it, they feel that they need to add to it," causeway tour guide Joan Kennedy told AFP. AFP | PAUL FAITH She and her colleagues now gently but firmly tell tourists to desist. At the exit from the causeway, a US couple said they were "distressed" to hear of the damage the metal caused. "Our guide mentioned as we came up that people had been putting coins into the stones. It's really terrible to hear that," said Robert Lewis, a 75-year-old from Florida. "It's kind of like damaging any kind of nature when you are doing something like that, putting something foreign into nature. It's not good," said his wife, Geri, 70. AFP | PAUL FAITH As part of a £30,000 ($40,000) conservation project, stone masons recently removed as many coins as they could -- without causing further damage -- from 10 test sites around the causeway. Henry said the trial was successful and is to be expanded across the causeway. "If we can get all those coins removed to start with that will help the situation and hopefully no more coins will be put in," he said. "If visitors see fewer coins in the stones and hear appeals to stop the damaging practice, the problem can maybe be solved. "We know that visitors love and cherish the Giant's Causeway,and many form deep personal connections to it, so we want this natural wonder to remain special for future generations." by Peter Murphy
The Citizen
11-06-2025
- Politics
- The Citizen
24 hours in pictures, 11 June 2025
24 hours in pictures, 11 June 2025 Through the lens: The Citizen's Picture Editors select the best news photographs from South Africa and around the world. Flooded houses at Polar Park in Mthatha, Eastern Cape, South Africa, on June 10, 2025. Local reports indicate there have been seven fatalities due to severe flooding in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. Picture: Matrix Images / Hoseya Jubase A vehicle is set alight during an anti-immigration demonstration in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, on June 10, 2025. Violence flared for a second night June 10 in the Northern Irish town of Ballymena after 'racially motivated' attacks sparked by the arrest of two teenagers accused of the attempted rape of a young girl. Hundreds of protestors, many of them masked, took to the streets of Ballymena, throwing petrol bombs and masonry as police responded with water cannon, an AFP journalist said. (Photo by PAUL FAITH / AFP) Eastern Cape EMS Rescue team searches for Jumba Senior secondary school students inside a school bus that was swept away by flood in Mthatha, South Africa on June 10, 2025. Local reports indicate there have been seven fatalities due to severe flooding in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape. Picture: Matrix Images / Hoseya Jubase US President Donald Trump arrives on stage to speak at Fort Bragg to celebrate the US Army's 250th anniversary at Pike Field at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, USA, 10 June 2025. Fort Bragg is home to the 82nd Airborne Division, Joint Special Operations Command and other units. Picture: EPA-EFE/STAN GILLILAND A woman stands before the 'Wrapped 1961 Volkswagen Beetle Saloon' by artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude, at the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin, Germany, 11 June 2025. The artwork is showcased to mark the 30th anniversary of the artists 'Wrapped Reichstag'. Picture: EPA-EFE/HANNIBAL HANSCHKE A full moon sets over the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, 11 June 2025. Picture: EPA-EFE/ERDEM SAHIN A tourist strolls along the Painted Animation Lane in Taichung, Taiwan, 11 June 2025. Animation Lane is a vibrant street adorned with murals of popular anime characters. Initially a local revitalization effort, it now draws visitors keen to enjoy and photograph its lively artwork celebrating Japanese pop culture. Picture: EPA-EFE/RITCHIE B. TONGO A man works at a construction site in Puncak Alam, outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 11 June 2025. 'The unemployment rate in Malaysia dropped to 3.0 percent in April 2025 from 3.3 percent in the same month of the previous year, marking the lowest level since April 2015, according to the latest data released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia. The number of unemployed persons shrank 5.5 percent year-on-year to a more than five-year low of 525.9 thousand, while employment increased by 2.8 percent to a record high of 16.82 million. Picture: EPA-EFE/FAZRY ISMAIL Rescuers work at the site of a drone strike in Kharkiv, northeastern Ukraine, 11 June 2025, amid the Russian invasion. At least two people were killed and 37 others injured, including five children, after Russian forces launched an overnight attack with drones on Kharkiv and its suburbs, according to the State Emergency Service (SES) of Ukraine. Picture: EPA-EFE/SERGEY KOZLOV A zookeeper sprays an Indian elephant with water during a heatwave at the National Zoological Park in New Delhi, India, 11 June 2025. The National Zoological Park has installed sprinklers inside animals' enclosures and sprays water on animals and birds to combat the effects of the heatwave. According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), Delhi registered 45-degree Celsius temperatures, and the prevailing heatwave is set to continue through 12 June. Picture: EPA-EFE/RAJAT GUPTA A small group of women who travelled from the Eastern Cape and Gauteng and joined by some mothers from the Western Cape march to Parliament during the Justice And Safety March For Children on June 11, 2025 in Cape Town, South Africa. The group is demanding an urgent call for justice, action and accountability concerning the safety of children in South Africa. (Photo by Gallo Images/Brenton Geach) An armed Israeli border police officer stands guard at an entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem, 11 June 2025. Picture: EPA-EFE/ATEF SAFADI A protestor is arrested during protests sparked by immigration raids in Los Angeles, California, USA, 10 June 2025. Approximately 2,000 National Guard troops were deployed on 08 June in Los Angeles by US President Donald Trump, though the state of California had not requested any additional assistance, and protests have continued against the Trump administration's immigration enforcement raids over the last couple of days. Picture: EPA-EFE/ALLISON DINNER A wax figure of Albert Einstein stands on the stage of the Archenhold Observatory in front of original formulas, in Berlin, Germany, 11 June 2025. The figure from Madame Tussauds Berlin is placed where Einstein first presented his general theory of relativity to the public 110 years ago, on 02 June 1915. Picture: EPA-EFE/HANNIBAL HANSCHKE MORE: 24 hours in pictures, 10 June 2025
Sunday World
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Sunday World
Man (55) accused of directing masked men at New IRA parade to stay in custody
The 55-year-old is now expected to be held in custody for at least another three weeks. Masked members of a Dissident Republican colour party take part in a commemorative march in Derry (Londonderry) in Northern Ireland on April 21, 2025, to commemorate the 1916 Easter Rising (Credit: PAUL FAITH / AFP) A security worker accused of directing men in paramilitary uniforms as violence flared during a dissident republican parade in Derry is set to remain in custody. Thomas Moore had been granted magistrates bail on charges linked to the Easter Monday disorder allegedly orchestrated by the New IRA. A prosecution appeal against his release was put on hold at the High Court today for further police investigations to be carried out. The 55-year-old is now expected to be held in custody for at least another three weeks. Moore, of Farren Park in the city, has been charged with managing a meeting in support of the IRA. He faces further counts of aiding and abetting in both wearing clothing in support of a proscribed organisation and in failing to comply with conditions imposed by the Parades Commission. Trouble erupted close to the scene of the annual parade from the Creggan to the Bogside in commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising. An estimated 50 petrol bombs and 50 fireworks were thrown at police during the disorder. Prosecution counsel argued that many of the men who took part in the march were masked and wearing paramilitary uniforms in direct contravention of a condition imposed by the Parades Commission. She told the court Moore, named as a proposed steward for the event, was identified by an air support unit leading other participants. 'He was observed directing a group of masked and uniformed parade members to their starting point,' the barrister claimed. After the march got underway a number of youths began to attack PSNI lines with devices loaded in shopping trolleys. 'It's highly likely the disorder was orchestrated by the New IRA to prevent police from disrupting what had become an illegal parade,' counsel submitted. Moore was also allegedly spotted beckoning some of the masked and uniformed men towards a gazebo for them to change back into civilian clothes. He then dismantled and put the tent in the back of a work van before being stopped and arrested, according to the prosecution. In a written statement Moore said he has worked in the security industry for 35 years, stewarding at events ranging from Halloween and Maritime Festivals to football matches, movie sets and US Presidential visits. He insisted: 'I played no role whatsoever in organising, supporting, assisting or encouraging any illegal activity.' Defence counsel Gavyn Cairns argued that Moore understood the Easter Monday event would be a completely lawful procession. 'He was stewarding or marshalling a legal parade where participants were permitted to wear period dress… from the 1970s,' the barrister contended. But adjourning proceedings until May 16, Mr Justice Rooney requested inquiries be made into claims that others convicted of similar offences avoided custodial sentences. 'There is no doubt from the photographs here that there is prima facie evidence,' the judge said. 'My proposal is to adjourn this for a period of three weeks to allow police time to carry out further investigations.'
Globe and Mail
17-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Globe and Mail
In photos: St. Patrick's Day brings boisterous parades and celebrations around the world
St. Patrick's Day, the annual celebration of all things Irish, is being marked in cities around the world on Monday with boisterous parades and celebrations. Revellers during the annual St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland. PAUL FAITH/AFP/Getty Images 1 of 18 Members of Bowling Green State University's Falcon Marching Band take part in the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland. Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters 2 of 18 Britain's Kate, the Princess of Wales, pats the Irish Guards' Mascot dog Turlough Mor at Wellington Barracks in London. Kirsty Wigglesworth/The Associated Press 3 of 18 Medals and a traditional sprig of shamrock on the uniform of an Irish guard during the St Patrick's Day Parade in London. ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images 4 of 18 People enjoy St Patrick's Day at the famous The Quiet Man Irish Pub in the Melbourne suburb of Flemington, Australia. WILLIAM WEST/AFP/Getty Images 5 of 18 Lord Mayor of Belfast Micky Murray takes part in the St Patrick's Day Parade in Belfast. Liam McBurney/The Associated Press 6 of 18 People participate in Montreal's Saint Patrick's Day Parade in Montreal, Canada, on March 16, 2025. ANDREJ IVANOV/AFP/Getty Images 7 of 18 A reveller wearing a costume gestures in front of members of the Irish Army, ahead of the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin. Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters 8 of 18 Prime Minister Mark Carney greets people as he attends the 200th St. Patrick's Day Parade in Montreal March 16, 2025. Peter McCabe/Reuters 9 of 18 People participate in Montreal's Saint Patrick's Day Parade in Montreal, Canada, on March 16, 2025. ANDREJ IVANOV/AFP/Getty Images 10 of 18 Revellers gesture from a window as they watch the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland. Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters 11 of 18 Revellers dressed in costumes pose for pictures ahead of the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland. Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters 12 of 18 Members of street performance group Macnas take part in the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland. Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters 13 of 18 Children watch the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland March 17, 2025. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters 14 of 18 Marching band members gather ahead of the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland. Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters 15 of 18 Participants attend Dublin's St Patrick's Day Parade in Ireland.16 of 18 A reveller poses ahead of the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland. Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters 17 of 18 Revellers pose for a photograph during the annual St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin. PAUL FAITH/AFP/Getty Images 18 of 18
