Irish Examiner View: Flaws in the system of detecting drink-driving

Irish Examiner View: Flaws in the system of detecting drink-driving

Alcohol is involved in over one-third of Irish road deaths where toxicology results are available.

Sat, 04 Apr, 2026 - 01:00

Bank holidays are now a traditional focus for road safety campaigns, which remain absolutely necessary.

Take the incident which claimed the life of Sheila Dunne in February 2023: A mother of two, she died when the vehicle she was travelling in crashed in Glanmire.

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Artemis

The Artemis II crew, from left: Jeremy Hansen, commander Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch and Victor Glover.
The Artemis II crew, from left: Jeremy Hansen, commander Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch and Victor Glover.

Was it the most eagerly awaited ‘go for launch’ message in the history of space flight?

Millions of people have been tracking the progress of the Artemis II space mission, but the astronauts heading towards the moon had a mundane issue to deal with in recent days: A toilet malfunction.

The €26m universal waste management system was hailed as a leap forward in deep space toilet technology, and little wonder.

The old spacecraft toilet arrangements led to complaints from astronauts for decades; between the condom-like apparatus used for urine and the nappy-adjacent system for other matters, the facilities were often uncomfortable and sometimes downright inefficient.

An astronaut referred to “a turd floating through the air” during one past mission, not the kind of heavenly body anyone is keen on encountering.

Happily, on this occasion, the Artemis crew soon had a vital message from mission control: “Happy to report that toilet is go for use.”

It is reported that the toilet’s suction mechanism is so loud that crew members must wear ear protection while using the facility, but at least it can be used. Even Nasa would struggle to get a plumber out on a bank holiday weekend.

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