After a number of valuable sulky race horses perished in a stable fire, a major drug dealer decided to exact revenge on the local community in East Limerick.

The hurling and the horses are two quintessential Irish pastimes — but the fastest field game on the planet got some serious horsepower when the sports were combined for the first time.

A little different from the average five-bed trade up, this property at Murroe in east Limerick has a few design features which make it stand out from the crowd.

Large swathes of the country will not have access to the free GP care for under sixes, it has emerged.

Trish Dromey reports on a eight-bedroom modern mansion which is new to the market in Co Limerick.

More than 87,000 people have lost their medical cards in the past year as the numbers eligible for free healthcare decreased by almost 5%.

A violent Dublin-based gang has avoided Garda roadblocks by taking trains as getaway transport after a series of aggravated burglaries in Co Limerick.

A young male has been killed in a road accident in Co Limerick today.

As members of Limerick City and County Council plan to vote on the practice of saying a prayer before meetings, chairman Kevin Sheahan revealed he has commissioned a crucifix to erect in the chamber.

Thousands are expected to congregate in rural east Limerick tonight and tomorrow to witness a re-enactment of the trial and crucifixion of Jesus.

A woman is recovering at her home after her car was swept off the road by tens of thousands of gallons of slurry, and dumped in a field.

Transport company bosses have drawn up major logistical plans to get more than 50,000 Limerick and Clare hurling fans to Croke Park for next Sunday’s All Ireland semi-final clash.

As the Ballydehob-based Fit-Up Theatre Festival gets ready to visit local towns and islands, Louise Roseingrave hears about the genesis of Ireland’s most unique - and lengthy - theatre festival.

Seven neighbouring food companies in north Cork and east Limerick have boosted their business by launching the umbrella brand A Taste of Ballyhoura Country.

The jury has heard closing speeches in the trial of a Dublin man charged with murdering rugby player Shane Geoghegan.

The Shane Geoghegan murder trial has heard that the defendant’s phone was used in an area and at a time where a previous witness said he discussed the killing.

DRIVING through Mitchelstown, a town whose easy traffic is still hard to get used to after being bypassed by the M8, I turn up a cul-de-sac and pause at the gates of Ballinwillin House.

CHAMPIONS Kilmallock have one foot in the quarter-finals of the Limerick senior hurling championship after defeating Garryspillane in a repeat of the 2005 final.

Two men were being questioned today over the seizure of drugs with a street value of up to €190,000.

CONNEMARA Mining’s latest drill has show that lands near Pallasgreen in Co Limerick contain vast amounts of zinc which could lead to the opening of one of the biggest mines ever in this country.

A FILM and play telling the true story of the 4,000 Famine orphans who were transported from Irish workhouses to Australia between 1848 and 1850 will feature in Limerick this week.

THE rural development programme which got under way last February is performing well and will achieve its overall targets, despite delays, according to Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs Minister Éamon Ó Cuív.

Seán doesn’t believe in Grand National-type training, it’s all hurling, everything with the ball, and it paid off

AS CERTAINTIES crumble every day it may be asking a lot for us to consider, much less accept, that one of the everyday pleasures of Irish life has become a threat to the environment.

Almost a third of rivers and a quarter of estuaries are polluted, a new report revealed today.

Residents in parts of east Limerick are being advised not to use their water for drinking, cooking or food preparation due to pollution concerns.

UP to two years ago when cystic fibrosis began to overwhelm her, Siobhán Ryan was regarded as one of the best Irish dancers in the east Limerick parish of Pallas.

Donal Hickey looks at mountain biking in Ireland

THREE firearms have been discovered during Garda raids on a halting site and houses in the Kilmallock area of Limerick.

RADICAL proposals on amending the liquor laws to curb rampant underage drinking will be brought to government during 2008, the chairman of the Dáil Justice committee said yesterday.

DEER have come under suspicion among farmers hit by an increase in bovine TB infection in Co Clare.

A VIRUS carried by the grey squirrel, which is dramatically increasing its numbers, poses a serious threat to the survival of the country’s native red squirrel population.

DEFENCE Minister Willie O’Dea was last night at the centre of a bitter row between two Fianna Fáil candidates.

ALL FARMS in river catchment areas are being inspected by Limerick County Council, in an effort to eliminate pollution risks from farm effluent.

THE boy-racers’ favourite mode of transport is now a collector’s item for a Limerick gang.

A SMALL community in Limerick has started a name-change battle to restore its old Irish title which, loosely translated, branded the village the stronghold of “loose women”.

Jimmy Woulfe, Mid West Correspondent

CHANGING lifestyles and a weakening of neighbourhood spirit in rural areas are threatening the voluntary contribution which so many thousands have given unselfishly to their local communities over many decades.