JANUARY

IN January of this year Mallow town councillor Jerry Mullally told The Corkman the fire that gutted the former Mallow Park Hotel was a "disaster waiting to happen". By the end of the year, and after a second fire, the hotel remained an eyesore on the town's main street, railed off for safety reasons from pedestrians and traffic.

Later that month Fianna Fáil Deputy Ned O'keeffe voiced his concerns that then Taoiseach Brian Cowen had to stand down in order for the party to survive the impending general election. He also informed us that the Chinese "intend to take over the world".

A Kanturk woman spoke out in January about having to endure "rats screeching and running" in the attic of her home rented from Cork County Council for the two and a half years that she has lived there.

FEBRUARY

At the start of February convicted sex offender Richard O'brien (52), who was staying in a caravan in Milstreet and being monitored by Gardaí, went missing and was spotted in several villages in Duhallow over a twoweek period.

A13-month-old baby boy and a19-year-old footballer tragically lost their lives in two separate road accidents in North Cork in the same week in February.

Senior Gardaí reported in February that in the last three months of 2010 North Cork was being targeted by travelling thieves from Cork City and Limerick.

Meelin village was on a high as they brought home the All Ireland Junior A Hurling Championshop Cup after defeating John Locke's in Croke Park.

Retired priest Fr Dan Duane was charged in Mallow District Court with sexually assaulting two teenage girls in separate incidents in the 1980s — he was subsequently found not guilty in a higher court.

MARCH

The general election saw Kiskeam native Michael Moynihan completely buck the national trend as he was the only Fianna Fáil TD in the county to return to the Dáil. The election also saw newcomer Aine Collins (FG) become the first woman to be elected in Cork North West.

In Cork East, Tom Barry (FG) and Sandra Mclellan (SF) were elected, both at the first attempt.

CSO figures compiled by The Corkman revealed the extent of emigration among North Cork's under 25s, with a 10% decline in this age group on the Live Register in the last year.

Women in Duhallow were having their shopping receipts checked by their partners and men were subjected to emotional abuse in the home, according to a new voluntary domestic helpline in Newmarket.

Gardai seized an arsenal of improvised weapons including slash hooks and a nail studded pickaxe handle during a dramatic dawn raid of a house in Charleville in March.

At the end of the month antique enthusiasts around the world were preparing to bid on the 800 treasures Mallow Castle had to offer in a high stakes auction. The castle was being cleared of its contents after Cork County Council agreed to buy it at a knock-down price.

APRIL

The recession was put on hold for the Mallow Castle auction, as the marathon bidding session with over 500 participants netted approximately €600,000.

Mallow's status as a 'hub town' is a handicap when securing European funding for community projects, according to the CEO of the Avondhu Blackwater Partnership.

A traumatised Mallowbased garda sergeant who was stabbed while trying to disarm a young Fermoy man — who subsequently took his own life — was awarded over €100,000 in damages.