Council Employee Killed in Road Accident
The tragic death has taken place of one of Castlebar’s best-known citizens, Brendan Hopkins (52) of Knockthomas, following a two car crash near Ballymiles, Bohola in the early hours of Monday morning. He was bringing two of his daughters and a friend to Dublin airport when the accident took place. The three passengers and the driver of the other car were taken to Mayo General Hospital. Mr. Hopkins was a revenue collector with Mayo County Council and was also involved with the local Credit Union. Removal takes place from Thomas Street Funeral Home to the Church of the Holy Rosary this (Wednesday) evening at 8 pm. Burial will take place in Castlebar Cemetery following Requiem Mass tomorrow at 12 noon.

Proposal to put Town Draft Development Plan on display deferred
Following a vote at a special meeting, Castlebar Town Council has deferred the decision to put the Town Draft Development Plan on public display until September. This will allow the councillors who were against the proposal to get legal advice on their rights as members of the planning authority. The meeting showed the councillors the amended plans following submissions and the changes that had been made by the council and the officials. A number of council members said they were not aware that final decisions were to be made. Cllrs. Paddy Burke, Aidan Crowley, Eoin Garavan, Frank Durkan, Blackie Gavin and Mayor Michael Kilcoyne voted in favour of the proposal while Cllrs. Johnny Mee and Pat King voted against.

Body found in Castlebar lake
A body found yesterday (Tuesday) at Lough Lannagh, Castlebar has been identified as that of a local 21-year-old man. The remains were transferred to Mayo General Hospital where a post–mortem was carried out. Gardai say there is nothing suspicious surrounding the death.

Knock Jobs Bonanza
Capital allowance concessions will be included in the Draft Finance Bill, which is to be published in September. This will lead to the establishment of a 65 million Euro 350,000-square foot business centre adjacent to Knock International Airport, which will provide over 2,000 jobs. The building firm Pierce Contracting Ltd., is undertaking the development work. The first phase will involve the construction of 15 buildings on a 30-acre site. The County Council has granted full planning permission for the project.