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ZOE IRELAND DRAKE, the baby born in Ireland prematurely when her US-bound flight was diverted to Dublin, has arrived safely home in Tennessee.
Baby Zoe’s mother Jenny’s waters broke suddenly on an American Airlines flight from Scotland when she was just 25 weeks pregnant.
Zoe, whose middle name was changed from Elizabeth to Ireland after the country of her birth, was subsequently delivered in the Rotunda Hospital weighing just short of two pounds.
The Drake family had been stranded here as due to the premature nature of Zoe’s birth it was not safe for her to travel on a commercial flight for an extended period of time.
A crowdfunding campaign was subsequently launched in order to fund the cost of the $67,000 (€62,000) medical flight required.
The family were still €30,000 short of their target last week when an anonymous donor stepped in to pay the remainder.
“Now that we are kind of to the end of it, we can call it what it really is, which is a blessing. It’s been a crazy, traumatic, wild blessing, but it has been a blessing,” a relieved Jenny told WKRN TV in Nashville.
Zoe and family are now being cared for at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital in the city, as doctors make the final checks to be certain she is healthy enough to return home.
Last week Jenny said she was left “speechless” by the anonymous donation that secured her baby’s passage home.
“For such a small country you have such a big heart,” she said.
Everyone we have met has opened their arms or house to us. You guys a have a lot to be proud of.
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Shocked that we even have mink farms here.
@Aisling: disgusting.
@Shane McGrath: lots in Donegal
@Aisling: you literally took the words out of my mouth. Awful isn’t it?
And the government funds them with taxpayers money! Thankfully I think they have been told to wind down business.
https://www.donegaldaily.com/2019/04/25/irish-council-against-bloodsports-slam-e200000-grants-to-donegal-fur-farms/amp/
@Aisling: I’ve never seen a Mink drive a tractor
Why are there Irish mink farms?
@Mick Hyland: fake eyelashes
@Niamh Hayes: please tell me that’s a joke?
@Amused Bystander: no it’s TRUE. they’re mink. Imagine dying to create something that silly looking.
Who even wears mink any more? I would be morto. Seriously.
@Dearbhla O Reilly: Fake eyelashes are from minks….weird!
@Dearbhla O Reilly: Russians.
@Alan Lynch: you’re so silly. Morto for ya.
Forgot about eyelashes being mink. Morto for wearing them too.
Totes morto all around leds.
Surely nobody should be arriving from Denmark?
@David Law: The UK has banned arrivals from Denmark.
@David Law: the problem is Denmark is linked to Germany and therefore onto Europe . If it was an Island it could be contained but even if flights stopped from Denmark, flights will go ahead from neighbouring Germany…..etc . Lets hope it can be contained and this positive news of a vaccine will come good . The problem seems that it already has become zoonotic from Mink !
How are mink farms still a thing. I know they are mean bustards to the ahem….bustards et al. But what we are doing to them is beyond despicable. Poor little guys.
Talk of a vaccine circulates and suddenly the virus mutates
@Mike Litterus: or talk of the mink since the weekend and news of vaccine breaks today. It’s less dramatic when you put it the right way round.
@Mike Litterus: all virus mutation is very well known. Perhaps you should read more.
I hope all the animals rights people who released mink into the wild are happy now.
We can and should cull all mink in farms and close them down, but our rivers are thick with wild mink at this stage.
@John Mulligan: Gas. I read these 17million mink were farmed not wild.
Thats it no more Danish Pastries.
@Jay Kearney: why, do they make those with mink?
Mink are being incinerated alive. The process is to gas them for 10 to 15 seconds and throw them into an incinerator but many survive the gassing. Absolutely barbaric
What is the purpose of mink farms ???
@Alan Barber:
Mink cheese!
@Alan Barber: I suspect it may be to farm mink. They are very popular pets.
@Alan Barber: high end clothing, pork, cheese and mink are the biggest export in Denmark
@Andrew Letcher: not pets, it’s for fur. They are kept in cages, then gassed and skinned. Fur has lots of uses….ALL fashion related
@Alan Barber: To farm minks, clue is in the name.
@Rúairí O’ Sullivan: Just remember fashion is the 2nd largest contributor to global warming!
@Rúairí O’ Sullivan: OMG so these little black and white critters I bought. May not be mink. Does this mean no cheese either?
@Alan Barber: fake eyelashes
The Danish Government websites dates this back to early September. Worrying.
It’s an engineered virus so its obviously going to mutate.
@Eddie Michael: oh god, really.
So your saying a naturally occurring virus doesn’t mutate?……oh wait….
@Eddie Michael: sweet jesus…did the YouTube machine tell you that? Did you watch 15 videos and come to that conclusion? Do you actually understand how biology works?! Trogladite
I’m not saying that God is a vegan but it would explain most of 2020.
It’s OK! We have the vaccine soon.
@Dave Barrett: Er, the whole issue is that this strain is antibody resistant so the vaccine may not work on it. or where you been sarcastic? we need emoji’s on the journal.
Lol! Mink farms. Hands up if you laughed about the current virus coming fro a dead bat at a food market. Not exactly a million miles away. But you know, good employer, have to make a living boss! etc etc.
have your say