Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre’s Fun Day will take place on Saturday 28 July from 11am – 2pm. All the usual attractions plus more (see poster)! The sun always shines on Drylaw’s Fun Day (well, nearly always) so don’t miss it!
Day: July 19, 2012
Countdown to The Quest 2012
Summer’s flying by (or maybe floating by!) and one of the highlights of the summer youth programme is now just a week away. The Quest is the annual event enjoyed by hundred of local young people, and the final destination this year is , as always, a closely-guarded secret.
Muirhouse Youth Development Group’s (MYDGs) Joanne Stewart explained: “The Quest is an area-wide event – a scavenger hunt across Edinburgh ending in a secret location with a barbecue and fun activities for around 100 young people and volunteers, which promotes team work and sportsmanship. The Quest aims to include each youth agency in the North Edinburgh area and is one of the most popular area-wide activities – it’s been taking place for many years, always with a great turn out. We are very proud to say that we won an award from the Edinburgh Evening News last year for ‘the best youth initiative’, voted for by Evening News readers, which I think shows the popularity of the event in the community. We’re hoping this year’s Quest will be even better!”
The Quest starts from Scottish Gas HQ on Waterfront Avenue next Friday (27 July) at 11am and finishes … well, who knows?
Some pictures from Quest 2010:
Legionnaires’ outbreak officially ‘over’
The Edinburgh Legionnaires’ disease outbreak is officially ‘over’. The outbreak, which struck in May and has so far taken the lives of three people, was declared over following a review meeting of the Incident Management Team (IMT) on Tuesday.
To date, there are a total of 101 confirmed and suspected cases. All of these cases have links to the south west of Edinburgh and fit the timescales of exposure and the incubation period for developing Legionella-related illness.
Detailed investigations into the source of the outbreak continue with further testing and analysis of the environmental samples taken from potential sources being carried out.
Lothian and Borders Police and the Health and Safety Executive are jointly investigating the circumstances of the deaths under the direction of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) Health and Safety Division, and research is also underway to better understand the full extent of the outbreak.
Dr Alison McCallum, Director of Public Health and Health Policy, NHS Lothian said: “As we have seen over the last week, we can expect further cases who have been ill for some time to continue to come forward and our increased surveillance will continue.
“However, all the evidence is suggesting that the action taken when the outbreak was first identified was effective and all cases fall within the expected incubation period, so the decision has been made to declare the outbreak over.
“Laboratory work is ongoing to try and identify the source conclusively but, as we have said from the start, it may not be possible to do so.
“There is also more work to be done to gain a better understanding of the scale of the outbreak and how to manage outbreaks in the future. We hope that people who are approached to participate in these studies will come forward and help us with this significant piece of research.”
A full report into the outbreak detailing the epidemiological, environmental, meteorological and microbiological investigations and recommendations for the prevention and control of future outbreaks will now be produced.
Welcoming the announcement, Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said: “It is good news that the outbreak has been declared over, and as we have already seen, the number of new cases has been dropping off over recent weeks.
“We have worked closely with NHS Lothian to ensure the outbreak was well managed, and I would like to pay tribute to NHS staff who have coped extremely well with this situation.
“However, we have to remember that there are some patients who remain extremely ill, and NHS staff are maintaining high quality care for those patients.
“The Health and Safety Executive and Edinburgh City Council are continuing their investigations into the source of the outbreak.”
City copes with latest deluge
With weather warnings now lifted, and today’s forecast showing signs of improvement, it looks like the worst of the weather is over – for the timebeing at least.
The city council was well-prepared for Wednesday’s deluge. Speaking yesterday, city transport convener Councillor Lesley Hinds (pictured above) said: “Our roads teams have been fully prepared to deal with predicted heavy rainfall and we are keeping in regular touch with partner organisations. A Flood Control Coordination Centre has been set up as part of the Council’s Emergency Flood Plan. Drains and waterways have been cleared of debris, while river levels and hot spot areas have been continually monitored throughout the day. Around 7,000 sandbags were ready to be deployed, some of which were delivered to households in response to residents’ concerns. Residents can be assured that the situation will continue to be monitored over the next 18 hours while the amber alert is still in place.”
Some local scenes yesterday:
While today’s forecast is for improving weather, it may be prudent to keep those wellies handy just in case …!