Statue location dispute ongoing

A TOWN has been gripped by a moving statue saga that has led to heated exchanges between politicians, clergy and hospital managers.

The Health Service Executive (HSE) has applied for planning permission to retain a life-size statue of the Sacred Heart in the grounds of a local hospital. But angry local councillors and senior clergy want the monument returned to a perch above the main door of Killarney Community Hospital where it had been in situ for over 70 years.

The row dates back to March of last year when the HSE removed the statue from above the entrance and relocated it to the grounds of the hospital.