By Sarah Gill
02nd Mar 2023
02nd Mar 2023
Your speedy summary of today's must-read stories.
Death toll rises to 42 following Greek train crash
As the death toll of Greece’s worst rail accident rises to 42 following a head-on collision outside the central Greek city of Larissa that’s been blamed on human error, angry protests have erupted. Angry demonstrators rallied outside the Athens office of Hellenic Train, as police used tear gas to disperse protesters who threw rocks at the building.
Patients awaiting transfer after Wexford hospital fire
According to the Cathaoirleach of Wexford Co Council, Councillor George Lawlor, there are 30 of 207 patients in Wexford General Hospital requiring transfer following the fire on Wednesday. Speaking on RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland, Cllr Lawlor praised the “war-like effort” to evacuate patients and contain the fire. “It was a logistical nightmare in reality. And it’s remarkable that we were down to the figure of 30 patients. Patients who were in intensive care and mothers with babies in incubators, newborn babies.”
AIB customer loans reduced by over 90%
Around 1,900 AIB customers who have experienced difficulties repaying their loans have had them reduced by over 90% as part of final debt settlements. The bank said this represents just over 1% of the roughly 150,000 customers who have been helped by its debt support unit to return to a sustainable financial position following a period where they faced challenges in meeting agreed loan repayment terms.
Government told that companies must pass falling energy prices to households
The Society of St Vincent de Paul has called for urgent steps from the Government to put pressure on gas and electricity companies to pass on falling international energy prices to households, as a damning new report revealed 450,000 people had to go without heating their homes. According to the SVP research, the number of people unable to adequately heat their homes has more than doubled to 377,000 while a further 453,000 went without any heating at all at some point in the last year.
SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasts off
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has blasted off to the International Space Station carrying two NASA astronauts, a Russian cosmonaut, and the second Emirati to voyage to space. While aboard the ISS, the Crew-6 members will conduct dozens of experiments including studying how materials burn in microgravity and researching heart, brain and cartilage functions.
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