Councillor condemns youths firing missiles at passing vehicles in Carrick-on-Suir
Motorist recalls frightening experiences of mud being thrown at her car by youths gathered on top of a railway bridge in the town
A Carrick-on-Suir councillor has condemned incidents of youths throwing sods of muck and other missiles at passing vehicles in his hometown in recent weeks.
Sinn Féin Cllr David Dunne said these attacks on motorists were putting people's lives in danger if the missiles cause them to swerve their vehicles.
“I condemn this behaviour outright and ask people to stop it. It's not harmless fun, it's very dangerous,” he declared.
Photographer Anne Marie Magorrian's car was struck twice on two separate evenings by youths pelting sods of muck from the top of the railway bridge at the Sir John's Road roundabout in Carrick-on-Suir.
The Ballyneale resident said the incidents happened on two mid-week evenings in the run-up to Halloween night.
“The first time it hit my windscreen, I lost total concentration. I was lucky I didn't hit the wall. The second time, it hit the roof of my car. It was like a body had fallen on top of the car. It was very frightening. I got an awful shock.”
She said she got out of her car the first time it was struck to remonstrate with the youths and saw between 10 and 15 of them running away down the rail line.
“I was disgusted. It's really terrible behaviour. You can imagine how frightening this would be to someone older than me.”
Cllr Dunne said he hadn't received any direct complaints from motorists about objects being thrown at their vehicles but had seen a social media post highlighting and criticising the incidents, which he understood also happened elsewhere in the town.
A Garda spokesman confirmed gardaí received reports of youths throwing missiles at vehicles in Carrick-on-Suir in the run-up to Halloween and over the Halloween weekend. He said the Pill Road and Sir John's Road were two of the areas in the town where motorists were targeted.
He said gardaí have been engaging with community groups in the town in relation to stopping youths engaging in this anti-social behaviour.
The Garda spokesman added that gardaí have received no further reports of such incidents in Carrick-on-Suir since the Halloween weekend.