News Tuesday January 27th Smart signs lead the world The Outer Hebrides Community Safety Partnership has been shortlisted for two national awards for campaigning work in accident prevention and awareness-raising. Their unique idea to incorporate Quick Response (QR) Codes onto safety signage is leading the world, with the ‘Smart Signs’ they’ve invented linking directly to first aid advice provided by British Red Cross. The idea came after a number of coastal/hill fatalities in recent years, with signs preparing island visitors for the dangers of the beautiful but exposed Hebridean terrain, making the Outer Hebrides a safer place to visit. The three parts to the initiative are a set of safety advice booklets, complementary Route Cards which record the planned activity and anticipated time of return, and the Smart Signs themselves, which use smart phone technology to link with emergency advice and give each sign Coastguard registered location numbers and GPS map references. Now the idea’s up for a peoples choice award with a £2000 prize, which would pay for 15 more signs at risk locations throughout the Islands. You can vote for “SMART signs project” by going to the Scottish Community Safety Network website at safercommunitiesscotland.org and searching for the safer communities awards 2015. Weather warning updated The Met Office’s yellow ‘be aware’ weather warning for blizzard conditions and lying snow was updated yesterday, and now covers a wider area of Scotland and Northern England. The warning comes into force at 9am tomorrow (Wednesday) and continues through until midnight on Thursday. During this time cold air, strong north-westerly winds and heavy snowfalls are expected, although coastal areas may be protected from some of the worst effects. The Chief Forecaster yesterday said: “An active cold front is expected to push southeast across the UK during Wednesday, introducing an increasingly cold and unstable air mass. Showers will become frequent and heavy, falling as snow and driven well inland by strong to gale force northwesterly winds. The public should be aware of the potential for disruption to travel.” As always, Isles FM will keep up with the changing situation and update listeners on any travel or event disruption, and on road conditions through tomorrow and Thursday. Holocaust Memorial Day It’s Holocaust Memorial Day today, and a series of events at Lews Castle College invite everyone to participate in commemoration of genocides and human rights abuses around the world. An exhibition opens at 9am tomorrow in the college foyer, and during the day there’ll be presentations by Amnesty International, who hope to set up a branch in Lewis, and films shown at intervals highlighting the issues. Between 1pm and 2pm there’ll be a live link-up to other college campuses as a specially designed candle is lit. Stornoway is one of 70 locations chosen to participate in the ‘70 candles for 70 years’ commemoration, and internationally renowned sculptor Anish Kapoor has created the unique candles, one of which will be lit by Robert MacNeil MBE in Lews Castle College. It’s 70 years since Holocaust survivors were released from Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp during the Second World War. New Minister for Stornoway High Church Rev Dr Wayne Pearce is to become the new Minister of Stornoway High Church of Scotland, with his induction on Friday 6 February at 7pm followed by a social event in Stornoway Town Hall. Stornoway High Church has been without a Minister since Rev Willie Black retired early in 2011. The Induction Service will be taken by Rev Tommy Macneil, Moderator of Lewis Presbytery and Minister of Martin’s Memorial Church. On Sunday 8th February, Dr Pearce will be ‘preached into’ his new pulpit by the Moderator Designate of the Kirk’s General Assembly, Rev Dr Angus Morrison, formerly Minister of St Columba’s (Old Parish) Church. Dr Pearce is currently the APC Minister for Skye and Harris. He is married to Margaret and they have three children.
Posted on: Tue, 27 Jan 2015 08:00:00 +0000
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