Stone-throwing youths in Cork evading gardaí under the cover of local park’s pitch-black darkness

By Peter McCarthy, Corkman

Gardaí in Cork’s largest town are requesting lighting to be installed in its public park where gangs of youths have been throwing things at passing cars and then disappearing into the darkness before the guards can apprehend them.

Cllr Jack White brought a motion before this week’s meeting of Carrigaline Municipal District (MD) calling for lighting to be installed in Carrigaline Community Park in the interest of public safety and said that the request is “actually coming from the gardai.”

The Fine Gael councillor said “there were a number of incidents centring around youths congregating in the park. The guards were going in trying to track them down from firing fireworks at cars or throwing stones and whatever they were doing and there was no lighting in there and so the youths were dispersing too easily. The guards said if there was lighting there that would make it much easier for them to patrol it and manage it,” he said.

“I think they're willing to formalise that request in writing. I would hope that we could drive that [lighting request] as an MD to make sure that it doesn't get lost as an idea and make sure we can see it through the various stages of planning and funding that might be necessary as well,” Cllr White said.

He added that installing lighting in the park would also bring benefits for law-abiding people who want to use it at night.

“I think lighting in there is an important but basic ask from an amenity point of view and public safety,” he said, noting that “thankfully public order and crime issues there have calmed in recent months.”

The motion was seconded by Cllr Patrick Donovan who said the lighting is “certainly needed. I know myself as I saw around Halloween there were major issues in the park and the guards did have a hard time, purely because it was dark and you couldn't see where people were going.

"I think it would be well worth the investment to put in whatever lighting we can because it's badly needed there. It helps the guards and it helps the wider community as well.”

The other councillors at the meeting were also supportive of the motion. Cllr Una McCarthy said lighting would help alleviate the anti-social behaviour in the park and “encourage people to use the facility a lot more” while Cllr Ben Dalton O’Sullivan said that “if the gardai are looking for it there’s obviously a reason for it. If they think it’d help I’m supportive of it.”

Cllr Eoghan Fahy said he would “100pc support the motion.”

In a written response to the motion, Cork County Council Senior Executive Engineer Alan Cogan said the lighting request will be referred to the council’s public lighting section.