News
Kerry Airport COVID tests now available at Bon Secours Hospital
TESTING: Kerry Airport passengers can now get a COVID-19 test at the Bon Secours Hospital in Tralee without the need of a doctor's referral.
Kerry Airport Ireland and Bon Secours Hospital Tralee will provide COVID-19 tests for pre and post air travellers in and out of Kerry Airport this Christmas and into the New Year. The five-step online self-referral tests will be carried out at Bon Secours Hospital Tralee, not at Kerry Airport.
The test can be taken by outbound passengers a few days before they fly and inbound passengers a few days after they arrive in the county and once they have complied with any isolation regulations that are in place at that time. The test costs €80 – the lowest in the country.
The idea will overrule the need to get a doctor's referral before attending the drive-in clinic at the Tralee hospital.
“It’s beyond comprehension that it has become such a difficult decision, whether to travel home or not. This is something that our diaspora would not give a second thought about any other year. But this is not any year and, so far, the advice from those who know is ‘don’t travel’ because the risks associated with COVID transmission are too high,” the Chief Executive of Kerry Airport Ireland, John Mulhern, said. “Most will sacrifice the trip this time for the greater good, but for some there are people very special to them who live alone or have lost all their social outlets this year. Many are feeling depressed or at least a little sad and need company. These visits home are essential to their health and well-being and we must make them possible, but safe.”
There are currently two daily return flights between Kerry Airport and Dublin with Aer Lingus Regional while Ryanair are due to resume their services to London (Luton and Stansted) in mid-December.
Passengers who wish to undergo a COVID test can visit www.bonsecours.ie/bst_selfreferralform.
Once the referral form has been completed, the Laboratory Department at Bon Secours Hospital Tralee will confirm the appointment date and time via email.
The routine hours for the swabbing clinic are daily between 8.15am to 10am, Monday to Saturday,
The swabbing clinic is in the staff car park of the Bon Secours Hospital Tralee. The entrance to the clinic is via the Matt Talbot Road. This is a drive through clinic and you will be asked to remain in your car.
A payment of €80 for the test may be made online when making the referral or over the phone when the appointment is being confirmed.
FUNDING
Meanwhile, Kerry Airport is in line to get €1.5 million in funding as part of the annual Government funded Regional Airport's Programme.
The funding, which will go towards enhancing safety operations at the airport such as air traffic control, fire services and security, is an increase in the €200,000 awarded last year.
It is also in addition to the €1.17 granted in July for capital investment and the €6m COVID-19 operational support funding, announced last month and that will be shared with Donegal and Knock Airports.
“Kerry Airport is enormously important both to the infrastructure and economy of County Kerry and the Southwest. This funding, coupled with the financial supports provided in the budget in October and early November will go some way towards helping Kerry Airport remain financially sustainable as it plans for a time beyond COVID-19,” Kerry TD and Minister for Education Norma Foley said.
Park Rangers to get power to on-the-spot fines following Killarney park fires
National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) rangers will soon have the power to issue significant on-the-spot fines to people whose carelessness causes fires or breaks rules in Killarney National Park, following the announcement of new government legislation.
Under the proposed National Parks Bill, rangers will be given stronger enforcement authority to penalise illegal activities, such as lighting fires or using disposable barbecues in vulnerable wild areas. The measures follow a major wildfire at 5 Mile Bridge that destroyed 17 hectares of heath, bog, and ancient oak woodland after burning for seven days.
Announced by Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Biodiversity Christopher O’Sullivan TD, the legislation will place Killarney National Park on a dedicated statutory footing, establishing nature conservation and restoration as its primary management goal.
Minister O’Sullivan stated that the law comes at a critical time, pointing to recent fires in Killarney and the Wicklow Mountains as proof that park rangers need tougher powers to tackle reckless behaviour.
Divisional Manager for Killarney National Park, Eamonn Meskell, welcomed the measures, noting that the framework will strengthen local protection for native woodlands and wildlife while supporting long-term conservation efforts.
NPWS Director General Niall Ó Donnchú added that modernising statutory powers will provide essential tools for staff working to safeguard the 10,900-hectare park.
Minister meets emergency fire crews
Minister Christopher O’Sullivan visited Killarney National Park to meet members of the emergency fire crew and thank them for their efforts in containing the recent wildfire at Five-Mile Bridge.
NPWS staff worked around the clock over seven days to suppress the blaze, which burned through dry heath, wet heath, blanket bog, and native oak woodland.
Killarney hosted the largest orienteering festival ever held on Irish soil this past week, bringing over 2,000 international competitors and generating more than 10,000 bednights for the local area.
Organised by Kerry Orienteers, the week-long event drew participants from 35 countries to take on a series of technical courses across local mountain terrain, indoor spaces, and town streets. Organisers claimed the gathering was the largest of its kind globally.
The festival kicked off at St Brendan’s College with Ireland’s first-ever indoor orienteering event. Competitors then moved into the wild for five days of open mountain challenges around Glenflesk and Kilgarvan, tackling the rugged slopes of Crohane Mountain and Black Lakes.
The action will draw to a close today (Friday) following a high-speed urban street event through the centre of town.
Athlete ages ranged from under 10 to over 80, with Switzerland bringing the largest international group of nearly 300 entrants, alongside major teams from the UK, Finland, France, and Czechia.
Brendan O’Brien of Kerry Orienteers said the club was thrilled with the turnout, noting that the week provided a massive economic boost for local accommodation and tourism while putting Killarney on the global orienteering map.
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