GOOD MORNING.
Here’s all the news that you need to know as you start your day.
1. In our lead story this morning Niall O’Connor digs through Cork’s “dangerous structures” list to reveal that the city has 103 active complaints about buildings in its register.
The categories range from masonry in danger of falling to fullscale risk of collapse. On one busy street, Bridge Street in the city centre, there are five buildings at risk of falling down.
On the city’s main thoroughfare, St Patrick Street, there is a building with dangerous plasterwork at risk of plummeting to the street.
2. Potential threats from so-called Islamic State against Americans in Afghanistan are forcing the US military to develop new ways to get evacuees to the airport in Kabul, a senior US official has said.
The move adds a new complication to the already chaotic efforts to get people out of the country after its swift fall to the Taliban.
The official said that small groups of Americans and possibly other civilians will be given specific instructions on what to do, including movement to transit points where they can be gathered up by the military.
3. In The Journal’s latest FactCheck Lauren Boland debunks the claim that face masks increase children’s carbon dioxide intake.
The study the claim was based on was retracted shortly after publication and a range of other research has shown that wearing a face covering – even during intense exercise – is not dangerous for oxygen levels.
4. New Zealand conceded its ambitious “Covid zero” elimination strategy may no longer be viable today as an outbreak of the virulent Delta variant spread further.
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins reported a further 21 cases in a virus cluster that emerged in Auckland last week, ending a six-month run of no local cases and sparking a national lockdown.
5. Severe flooding hit areas of South Dublin yesterday as a Status Yellow thunderstorm warning was in effect for more than half of the country.
After bursts of heavy rain, gardaí issued a traffic alert for roads in South Dublin which were “impassable” due to flooding.
6. The Vatican has sanctioned a retired Polish archbishop for covering up child sexual abuse, the archdiocese in Wroclaw.
It is the latest in a series of such sanctions in the country.
The case against Marian Golebiewski, 83, is the most recent sexual abuse scandal to hit the church in the predominantly-Catholic Poland.
7. RTÉ has unveiled its autumn documentary line-up, with programmes focusing on a range of issues such as mother and baby homes, Ireland’s boom and bust and some of the country’s toughest crime cases.
Earlier this week the State broadcaster launched its autumn schedule, with a number of new dramas due to air over the coming months.
Highlights include a lookback at Keelin Shanley’s life, career and battle with cancer, a documentary series on the Magdalene Laundries and the story of debt and loss after the 1999 Telecom Éireann flotation.
8. It’s All Ireland final day and Cork are facing Limerick in the first ever meeting of the Munster rivals in the senior inter-county decider.
Shane Kingston and Eoin Cadogan have named to start for Cork, while, the defending All-Ireland champions have named an unchanged side from the team which started against Waterford in their final-four clash.
9. It’s a day of rest, and you may be in the mood for a quiet corner and a comfy chair. So we’ve hand-picked the week’s best reads for you to savour.
This week’s highlights include a deep dive into the story surrounding a mysterious person who is trying to get their hands on proofs of unpublished books by famous authors.
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