The N17 Knockdoe Galway to Tuam road is closed following a road traffic collision at 3.15pm today, but Gardaí say that the road will be re-opened shortly.

One man has been taken to hospital following the two vehicle collision, involving a car and a truck.

Diversions are still in place on the road, which has been closed for some hours.

The AA are urging people to use alternative routes until the road is re-opened.

Unrelated to this accident, there is also heavy traffic on the N59 Galway/Clifden Rd near Lough Bofin due to works that are in place until the end of October. Lane and speed restrictions are signposted.

The man taken to UHG is not understood to have suffered any serious injuries.

Surgery can be painful. But there are experts working on how to reduce pain.

And they will meet at NUI Galway for tomorrow, Saturday August 26th.

The 17^th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Irish Pain Society will mark the 10-year anniversary since the establishment of the Centre for Pain Research at the University, Ireland’s first multidisciplinary pain research centre.

The theme of this year’s meeting will focus on the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) theme for 2017, ‘Pain After Surgery’.

Professor David Finn, President of the Irish Pain Society, said: “Unfortunately, pain can be a serious unwanted consequence of surgery, affecting millions of people worldwide and exacting a very significant toll on health, wellbeing, society and the economy.

“To address this important unmet clinical need, we require a better understanding of pain neurobiology, and the mechanisms and factors influencing the transition from acute to chronic pain. The Irish Pain Society meeting this year has been organised to increase our understanding of postoperative pain and its treatment,” Mr Finn added.

Speakers will include Professor Esther Pogatzki-Zahn from Germany, who will discuss the prediction and prevention of pain after surgery. Also speaking will be Professor Alison Twycross from the United Kingdom, who is an expert in postoperative pain management in children.

Dr Patricia Lavand’homme will speak about the transition from acute to chronic pain. Dr Niamh Moloney, Guernsey will discuss the profile and management of persistent pain following breast cancer treatment and Dr Rachael Powell will talk about the psychological aspects of understanding and reducing postoperative pain.

The meeting will provide an opportunity to broadening knowledge and networks across Pain disciplines, with the aim of moving towards a more enlightened approach for improved understanding and management of pain post-surgery.

Professor Finn added: “I am really excited to be hosting this year’s Irish Pain Society meeting in Galway and anticipate a day filled with informative and thought-provoking talks covering the cutting edge of research on pain after surgery, as well as fruitful discussions and interactions with colleagues.”

University Hospital Galway has defended its response to a patient who collapsed and hit his head last week while awaiting treatment, the Irish Times has reported.

Witnesses who wish to remain anonymous say that the hospital was not overly busy when the incident occurred.

They say that a middle-aged man looked like he was distressed while awaiting treatment in the emergency department.

The man then stumbled from his chair towards a door and hit the back of his head “with an unmerciful smack,” the Irish Times reported.

The man then suffered a heart-attack, and a doctor came rushing out to begin chest compressions.

UHG told the Irish Times: “At the time the emergency department was very busy and congested.” This contradicts the witnesses accounts of what happened.

“The patient collapsed in the waiting area and was treated immediately as an emergency in the waiting room,” it said.

“The emergency department is equipped with all necessary resuscitation equipment. This patient received immediate treatment and was then admitted to an inpatient bed,” the hospital added.

COPE Galway has hit out at the lack of additional social housing in the city, stating: “Without provision of additional social housing we are simply at nothing.”

The organisation has also called for vacant properties in the city to be brought back into use.

This is in light of the findings of the Daft.ie Rental Price Report for the second quarter of 2017 which shows a 10% increase in rent levels for Galway City in the past 12 months.

The local charity says that homeless services are struggling to address the unprecedented homelessness crisis in the city which is most evident with the growth in rough sleeping over recent months.

They say that this is resulting in the growing numbers of families and individuals who become homeless remaining in emergency accommodation for extended periods of time.

COPE Galway’s Martin O’Connor said that is is clear that the private rental market does not offer a solution to the crisis we are struggling to deal with.

“This Daft.ie rental report which highlights the chronic shortage of supply and ever increasing rent levels in Galway is further proof, if proof were needed, that the private rental market is in serious difficulty and that those most negatively impacted on are families and individuals who cannot afford the rents being asked for.  Without the provision of additional social housing we are simply at nothing,” said Mr O’Connor.

Mr O’Connor went on to welcome recent Government policy initiatives to bring vacant properties back into use as something which also offers hope for the many people at risk of and experiencing homelessness.

“At a time of shortage it is vital that housing stock in the city is utilised to the fullest extent possible and measures incentivising property owners to put vacant units into use and taxes to penalise them for not doing so are required,” he added.

A 23-year-old man has died following a single vehicle crash in Shannongrove, Banagher. The crash took place at approximately 00.05 yesterday morning.

Gardaí have said that that the 23-year-old man was fatally injured when the car he was driving collided with a wall. He was the sole occupant of the vehicle.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene and his body was taken to Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe.

The flags are flying.

Galway Pride festival began today with an enormous LGBT pride flag being unfurled at Eyre Square at 1.30pm.

There are a plethora of events planned throughout the week, and tonight sees the celebrations hit the Róisín Dubh with the official launch party beginning at 7.30pm.

The biggest event of the week will be the parade, beginning at 2pm on Saturday.

Grand Marshall for this year’s celebrations is Cameron Keighron, who described it an an ‘honour’ to have been given the position.

“I hope to give visibility to the most margianliaed sections of our community and use this opportunity to highlight the fights that lie ahead,” he said.

Pride is a celebration of our diversity and I am excited to share it with you,” Mr Keighron added.

The Guards aren’t known for their good sense of humour.

And this week, they have hammered that fact home, with possibly the poorest tweet we have ever seen.

Obviously, the Races is a week of craic and drink and well-dressed individuals from far and wide.

It seems that the Gardaí, caught up in this positive atmosphere, decided to try an alternative way of getting their message across, with this shockingly un-punny tweet.

Looking for a few 'Tips' for the #GalwayRaces.? Get on all of these and you’re onto a winner! #TipTuesday Don't gamble with road safety pic.twitter.com/e9HTPKN441

— An Garda Síochána (@GardaTraffic) August 1, 2017

Though reaction to the tweet appeared to be largely positive, this is probably because most people coudn’t be bothered even commenting on such nonsense.

Stick to policing lads, yeah? Comedy really ain’t your bag.

Galway’s Shop Street is ripping up its cobble stones, because too many people are tripping over them.

The casualties include a woman in her sixties who broke her two front teeth and another woman in her eighties who broke her cheekbone.

The number of people getting hurt has increased since the council started doing repairs on the paving which was laid down 20 years ago.

The Irish edition of The Times says the city council is looking at other options for the pedestrian area but work is unlikely to start this year.

€10,000 has been approved for the controversial greenway between Galway and Dublin.

The greenway came under the spotlight earlier this month over concerns that compulsory purchase orders could be used to force farmers to divide up their land for the development of the route.

Nationally, a substantial €11.4 million has been approved for the funding of 219 rural recreational developments, the Department of Rural and Community Development also announced.

As well as greenways, the multi-million euro package will also be used to support ‘small scale’ projects like blueways and tourism trails, which have a maximum funding of €10,000.

This will also fund some ‘large scale’ national projects, including €1 million for the Slieve Bloom Mountain Bike Trail – the highest amount available.

The Gaza Kids to Ireland are coming back to Galway!

A group of children from the Palestinian territory will be playing in Kinvara on Monday, 31st July at 3pm, in what will once again be a joyous occasion.

Incidentally, Kinvara became the first town in Ireland to boycott Israeli goods, as pro-Palestinian activist Joe Loughlane recently pointed out in an interview .

Kids from Al Helal Academy in the Gaza Strip, described by some as an ‘open-air prison’, will be playing matches in many towns and cities across Ireland in the coming days.

After being in Ballybrack, Co. Dublin today, they will make their way west tomorrow, and take to Killina pitch in the afternoon.

Last year, Israel blocked the children from leaving Gaza for their scheduled trip, and they were required to postpone and reschedule their entire trip when their permits were finally granted in late July.

But upon arriving in Ireland, the trip was successful, highlighted by thier meeting with President Michael D. Higgins.

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JP McMahon has backtracked on his promise to close his Galway restaurants during this years races, however his Michelin starred restaurant Anair will close.

The chef and restaurateur took to Twitter last year to vent his anger at the behaviour of some during one of  Galway’s busiest periods.

Abusive customers. Drunk and disrespectful. People pissing and vomiting on door. I'll close the restaurants for #GalwayRaces next year.

— Jp McMahon (@mistereatgalway) July 29, 2016

McMahon said that after eight people did not show up, which is one third of his small restaurant, it was not worth it to open this year.

Aniar is renowned for its high-class food and wine and during the Galway Races, and its big window facing Dominic Street Lower can sometimes be a window to another world from the fine-dining experience inside.

Did JP Make the right call? Share and tell us what you think.

The city and suburbs are top of the tree in Ireland when it comes to single people, new census figures have revealed, with over half of residents unmarried.

There were 66,461 persons aged 15 or over in the settlement of Galway city and suburbs of which 35,278 (53.1%) had a marital status of single.

There were 17,119 (54.1%) single males and 18,159 (52.1%) single females – leaving a total surplus of 1,040 gentlemen!

Nationally,  41.1% of the population aged 15 and over, accounting for 1,544,862 people, were single.  Over one-third of single people (36%) lived in cities, 34% lived in rural areas with remaining 30% in urban areas excluding cities.

Just under 40% of people living in Tuam are single, while the figure for Cliften is just over 40%, which is more in line with the national average.

Remarkably, two-thirds of Barna residents are married, with only 238 (33.3%) single males and 257 (32.8%) single females.

It must be remembered however that ‘single’ actually means unmarried, and the true number of singles is rising and falling every day.

And to those approaching their 53rd birthday: well, 53 is the peak age for separation and divorce.

Take from that what you like!