EVERY WEEKDAY EVENING, TheJournal.ie brings you the five stories you need to know before you head out the door…

1. #RIVER SHANNON The body of a woman was discovered earlier today in Limerick city. The woman, who is believed to be in her 40s, was discovered near the Shannon river. The area has been sealed off and gardaí are investigating if foul play was involved in the woman’s death.

2. #AMBULANCE HSE figures show that people living in the west of Ireland were most likely to face delays for ambulances, because the health services there missed targets for dispatching the vehicles last winter. On a national basis, ambulances met their target times for dispatch in January in 68.4 of cases – just under the 70 per cent target. TD Denis Naughten has said delays in responding to life-threatening 999 calls “are putting patients at risk, especially in rural areas”.

3. #INFORMATION The Data Protection Commissioner, Billy Hawkes, has said that he is ‘not surprised’ to hear that the CIA has been accessing information from US companies that are based in Ireland. He said that European law and gardaí also have significant rights of access. His comments came after details were revealed of a secret US programme to monitor internet users and access servers from companies like Google.

4. #SEANAD Shane Ross TD has said that the Seanad should be ‘burned at the stake‘. He made the comment today as a number of independent TDs called for the Seanad to be reformed rather than abolished. Meanwhile, Lucinda Creighton TD has said that she has two important men in her life – her husband, Senator Paul Bradford, and Taoiseach Enda Kenny. She said she believes there is always a role for the Seanad.

5. #FOUND A priceless medieval window frame that was stolen from a church in Co Leitrim has been found in a lake. The 15th century artefact had been discovered missing two weeks ago, and was found in the shallow part of Lough Garadice this morning by a local man. Gardaí are recovering the frame and the broken parts will be forensically examined.