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ST JAMES’S HOSPITAL has announced it will begin routine HIV and hepatitis B and C testing for all patients attending the Emergency Department.
The hospital said the aim of the testing is to diagnose new cases and bring disengaged patients back to care. Recent studies show that at least two people per 1,000 in the Dublin area have been diagnosed with HIV infection.
The reported prevalence of hepatitis C viral infection (HCV) in Ireland is between 0.5 and 1.2% while the numbers of those with hepatitis B viral infection (HBV) are unknown.
Pilot screening
St James’s treats over 45,000 patients within the Emergency Department annually and last year it conducted an opt-out pilot screening programme for patients who were having blood tests taken.
During that pilot phase 10,000 samples were obtained over a 44 week testing period.
Professor Patrick Plunkett, Medical Director of the Emergency Department at St James’s Hospital said today that some 84% of the previously disengaged patients from the pilot project are now successfully linked back to care.
“The pilot project we conducted in March of last year clearly demonstrated high prevalence rates for all 3 infections in attendees of our Emergency Department and it was alarming to see the high numbers of new diagnoses,” he said.
Get tested
Today is World Hepatitis Day and the HSE has urged the public in general to get tested if they may be at risk to Hepatitis C. Those most at risk are people who currently or at any time in the past have injected drugs, even if only rarely.
Professor Joe Barry described the virus as a “silent pandemic” partly becase it takes so long to manifest itself.
Spread largely by blood-to-blood contact, in about 15-30% of cases the body’s natural defences can eliminate the disease.
“The rest of those infected develop the chronic form of HCV. For most, however, this initially has no discernible symptoms, or non-specific ones such as general fatigue.”
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If you keep letting skum away with all kinds of crime they really have nothing to fear anymore. Even if they are caught. What is the worst that will happen to them. Not blaming the gardai. Just the whole legal system that’s cant wait to throw pensioners into jail for no tv license but bends over back words to keep real skum on the streets. I hope the woman involved does not bear the scar of this attack for the rest of her life.
They should bring in a eye for a eye
This young girl should call around to Alan shatters house this morning and ask this excuse what him what he is title is? Also a photo of her injuries and medical report should be sent to every judge who allows these s€um walk in and out of our courts with countless convictions.
Dogooders are as responsible for this girls injuries as the filth who did.
I’ve walked up there everyday and evening for over 10years and have never felt safe .. So I’m not surprised at all the drug takers dealers and piss head that sit on that corner is shocking .. I always thing what the hell do tourist think when they see it . And not a Gardai in sight ..
Sidling,
There’s normally a Gard around the GPO at least during the day it sounds as though they’re not there in the evening if there was one present how come no reaction to the woman’s screams which w can be pretty sure she did, scream that is
Sorry again should be Aisling
yeah I’m sure she did scream ppl don’t want to get involved – I know id panic and get the hell out of there ..o Connell street has plenty of CCTVs
I agree with you sacha but in the interest of keeping the argument valid, pensioners dont pay tv licences therefore there is none in jail for it. Sensationalism gets us no where
http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/struggling-oaps-face-prison-over-tv-licence-fine-29499019.html
WRONG WRONG WRONG.
Oh and look at the date. Its fairly recent. Now back in your box.
Fair enough but theres more to the case. The dates are back to before he was an oap. Realistically he us not going to spend any time in jail. Also whats the solution with tv licences. Withoit the threat of jail or fines. Who would pay them… no one. Again ve realistic and stop sensationalising everything
WRONG AGAIN. HERE YOU GO.
http://www.herald.ie/news/morning-in-jail-a-waste-of-time-tv-licence-couple-29617396.html
Why am I a sensationalist ?
I know its an emotive subject but im not wrong. As I said they wont spend time in prison! One spent half an hoir and the other spent a couple of hours. They state they forgot to get their licences in recent years and now thay he turned 66 hes an oap so free licence. Read the facts, its not wrong.
Out of curiosity. Whats your solution to not paying tv licence? If the law wasnt enforced regarding tv licence no one would pay. I work hard, pay my taxes and pay my tv licence. Why should i pay and soneone who decides not to pay forany years get off scot free?
Are you a politician. You must be a politician. If not you should be. Argue your point to the last even when the point has nothing to do with what I was saying in the first place. Just what you want to argue about. If you read my first comment you will know then that your WRONG. And if you read your 2nd last point you will see your WRONG but you have a get out card with your retro research to the point that you made that was WRONG. I’ve been wrong too and admitted it but then again. I’m not a politician. Or even a politicians lap dog.
Ask not who should pay the tv license. Ask why. Ask how the competition laws can allow this to continue. Ask why RTE pay huge salaries and can still be the cheapest terrestrial channel to advertise on while others pay less , have to charge more for advert space and just about make a profit. THIS IS FAIR? Anyway. My point at the start was why skumbags are doing this to INNOCENT people and get away with it. Not the tv license debate.
SACHA you MAKE some VERY interesting POINTS. Thank YOU for THAT.
An old woman was mugged as she lay unconscious outside Clery’s after a fall. Some druggy who was pretending to be her daughter. It’s unreal but the real crime happens in the courts every day – people lying to get off and then are given a suspended sentence – shame on them – these people should be doing forced community work.
THAnk yoU Soneps. Point WELL made
Sacha I love when you talk dirty to me x
What the hell is a dogooder?
Or a scar for a scar ?
Not a good comment for me I was mugged in o Connell street in the late and lost an eye suffering to this day . Store street Garda involved no persons ever charged case just forgotten .
Well as the woman is a degenerate junkie that terrorises people up and down O’Connell St on a daily basis I’m hardly surprised by this. Also she’s supposedly in hospital for falling over and hitting her head and not the attack
Specials on humble pie. Dial 1800 L.O.S.E.R for more info.
What a horrific attack on a young girl. Hope the cowards are caught quickly.
O’Connell street after dark is seriously dodgy. It’s like a scene from “the walking dead” at times. No point spending millions on fancy paving & so on to improve Dublin city centre if the Gardai aren’t given the resources & power to clear the “zombies” off the streets.
O’Connell street is actually getting worse (even by out own standards) – a group of junkies were skulking around their usual spot near Clerys on Saturday with one of them urinating on the street – at 730pm. If there was zero tolerance of this kind of degenerate behavior attacks such as reported would be far less frequent.
Im not condoning violence but, if things are getting this out of hand, u couldnt really blame the average joe soap for carrying protect around with him, at the end of the day its fair game if you get set upon!
Where are the guards?
Interesting question – trying to stay out of harm or lack of resources? My daughter phoned them on Friday afternoon to report a vicious attack on a young girl she was witnessing. The attack was happening in the Amiens Street/North Strand area. The young girl was being held in a headlock and being severely beaten by a man twice her size in broad daylight. The guards showed no interest – just asked my daughter if she could describe the man. Shocking
Prob getting tied up with checkpoints alongside the quays and other streets
It is unbelievable. I reported a junkie attacking people last year. Guards showed up 30 minutes later, by which time he’d gone, and told me that there was ‘nothing they could do’ because he ‘was in a public area’.
About two weeks later, he shoved someone under a bus and killed them. That’s what it finally took to get this particular individual off the streets, and now I’m told that his sob story means he’ll be out soon.
Utter disgrace, and really scary.
They’re hunting down TV licence offenders !!
That’s An Post’s gig. Nothing to do with guards
What they ( the authorities ) need to do is bring back the prison ships and anchor them off shore to house the A holes that roam our streets. Dublin is not a safe place after dark ,I don’t care what anybody says.
Nothing to do with gards but a lot to do with courts of injustice
Mark, get real..The Gardai cannot be everywhere all the time.
“O’Connell street after dark is seriously dodgy. It’s like a scene from “the walking dead””
Hardly.
You walk it regularly then Petr?
Patrick, fully agree and I’m not blaming the Garda on the ground, however certain areas of the city are known to be trouble spots so surely ops and planning should ensure that a police presence is there. Couple of mounted officers or a dog going up and down, convinced would be a deterrent. The mounted can get from one end to the other pdq and I’m pretty sure the dog could catch anyone legging it.
To repeat this is not a criticism of those Garda on the street rather than planning.
Petr doesn’t know anything beyond his apartment in upper Salthill.
He is also prone to exaggeration himself.
Too busy with check points for tax evasion, actually go after real criminals, you must be kidding…..
Do the 31 bellends that red thumbed your comment hope they get away with it? Pathetic kunts with no lives
Hope she makes a speedy recovery
Colin: “You walk it regularly then Petr?”
Yes I do, and I lived in Dublin for ten years and never had an incident at night. Either I was lucky are a lot of people are talking shyte.
This may sound extreme but it would be perfect. Give them gear bags , waste of life scroungers one year to beat there habit. If they show gear in there system after the year lock them up in solitary confinement for a year and beat them daily. Problem solved
Petr, you live in Galway but you walk it regularly?
Declan — Yes that’s correct.
“Petr doesn’t know anything beyond his apartment in upper Salthill.”
Say that to my face and see what happens to you.
Petr, making threats again?
Admit it, you’re a coward. You’d never dare insult me to my face, yet you stalk me here daily making jibes about my private life, you weirdo.
Garda to busy picking on easy targets that won’t cause grife and will pay their fines.
Petr, are you nuts? I’m in another country. Do you expect me to get on a plane and fly over there and say it to your face. Btw you threatened me so maybe you are the coward. You fly over here and I’ll say it to you then.
Jesus petr, you are exaggerating. You can dish it out but you can’t take it. You have trolled me a few times.
No, that wouldn’t work. Too expensive. I would be thinking more along the lines of labour camps. They could sweep the streets under observation. The real problem with junkies is allowing them to have children. Chemical castration and Labour camps. Much more effective. I respect all people but when you are under influence of drugs or alcohol you are just a problem to society.
Umm actually why we blaming junkies. Granted they are eye sore and steal all around them. There are gangs of youths in this area that mug people with knifes. Always been that way as Sheriff st just up the road
@petr people are discussing violence on the streets & you want to meet up with Someone on here and beat them up ?
Now now skieter, he didnt hurt nobody..
Walk past here 2/3 times a day i see dealers dealing all day! Ive seen people arrested and let back out in an hour! One the worse streets in Dublin sadly
Everyone is saying for ages now that O Connell Street is turned into a kip. Is it gonna take someone to be murdered on it in broad daylight before they take action and do something about it??
Spot on.
I hate going into town these days, there’s an air of menace about the place.
Sure where’d ya be without Rathmines, the best part of Dublin.
Good mix of people and minimal hassle.
What other capital City in Europe does thus happen.. Less than a mile away punters are been charged €7 plus for a pint like Dublin is some cosmopolitan capital of the world.. Yet the reality is we have drunks, junkies, drug dealers and the dregs of society all over our City Centre doing what they like because there are hardly any Gardai because of cutbacks….
Barcelona for one but it doesn’t make it any easier to accept!
There are plenty of gardaí. Store St, which I think is the biggest Garda station in the country, is only a few hundred metres away. The problem is that arrest and release of junkies is useless and imprisonment is useless. I’ve no idea what to do, short of dumping them in the Glen of Imaal right before the Army conducts a live fire exercise.
Nothing wrong with that idea fergal
Sounds like a plan!
Or u could start Circulating Dodgy heroine again, that would solve the problem!
Barcelona is not a capital! Despite your faux outrage Dublin is practically crime free compared to almost every other capital in Europe
I was in Barcelona drinking in a place called Las Ramblas (or something). Seemed to be their “going out) area. It was nice, but viciously pricey. Didn’t see a single drunk/junkie/beggar.
Compare that to the human cesspit that is temple bar.
Amsterdam, Berlin, Vilnius, Riga, Paris, Rome, Lisbon, Athens to name a few.
Athens is rough to be fair
Las ramblas can be very dangerous late at night- you are advised to avoid it. Also plenty of pickpockets and more in BCN- a couple of my friends got robbed there. A friend of a friend had acid thrown in his face- it happens. Barcelona isn’t safe either.
The alleys around Clery’s are supremely sketchy and lower Marlborough St has long been left to decay into a terminus for buses and junkies. What a terrible, terrible thing to happen to someone so young. I hope the poor woman will be okay.
People have been saying that our city centre is unsafe for a long time now. This certainly proves it. It is one of many incidents throughout the week, many of course go unreported that occur in our city centre. It is a result of poor policing and a weak justice system.
We might need to start considering an alternative to free city centre methadone for junkies. That’s exactly the corner of O’Connell St that they all congregate.
By comparison dublin is safe to the standards of many eu cities. I doubt this attack is on some random young girl who just happened to be walking through an area notorious for drug dealing, junkies and down n outs. For whatever reason we import junkies into the city from surrounding areas to get treatment, that has to stop.
Do you have some form of information about the background of the victim to imply so categorically that she may not be an innocent victim?
And even if so, does she really deserve to be scarred for life? Get a grip you troll.
He didn’t state it as fact he put it across as his opinion which he doesn’t need evidence for
Vocal outrage? After that post I’d consider changing my name to ‘verbal diarrhea’ if I were you. As has already been pointed out, it’s an opinion. An opinion based on a very good knowledge of what goes on in that area. And just to point out, in case you’re new to this ‘internet’ thing, just because someone has a point you don’t agree with doesn’t make them a troll – though your ragey reaction does make you a bit of a plank.
I don’t know if you recall the Late Late Show a few years ago about a girl who was waiting in O’Connell street for a taxi. She was attacked for no reason and her face was slashed. They don’t need a reason to attack you if they say something to you and you ignore them this is reason enough for them. I saw it happening to someone and I called the Garda.
Scarr – you are deflecting from the issue by trying to shift blame from the perpetrators to the victim. Maybe you have a reason to do this, I don’t know. This area is on the main street of our capital city.
Whether this lady was passing by or known to frequent that area she still felt the pain of having her face slashed with a blade, bottle or whatever. She has the possibility of being scarred for life physically and emotionally – think before you write.
Move the clinics out of the city and get rid of time off for good behaviour in drugs related cases (and eventually the rest). Stick them into the Curragh prison and let the army look after them. No methadone in prison either. You do it cold turkey.
On a side note. Last year we had some good weather on St. Patricks day. I passed some down and out hassling a couple of American tourists and screaming at them. No guards to be seen. Walked up the canal and found three guards hassling the after work crowd for drinking outside The Barge albeit too far away from the establishment for the guards liking. Garda management need to reevaluate their priorities.
Good point..the people who ring in to complain about the drinkers outside the barge need to understand they are taking gardai away from dealing with proper crime.
Or how about we create a fairly, more decent society, and then less people will end up poor and on drugs?
14 thumbs down to creating a fairer society! *facepalm*
These specimens aren’t the poor and the downtrodden they’re the $cum of the earth. All they do is take. They are given free travel and free money despite having never contributed a penny to society in return. Im all for a fairer more equal society but people like these exploit the the ideals of well meaning but misguided members of society like youself. People like these think people like you are fools so I don’t know why you’re standing up for them. Same people would rob you and step over you as soon as look at you. I know I probably wont change your mind, it’d more than likely take some drug-addled lunatic waving a syringe in your face to do that
I think people should be treated with compassion. We all make mistakes. I have too. But, no one forces people to start taking drugs. It’s their own choice.
If it was one of the usual zombies that got slashed, who cares? Pitty it didn’t happen to a few more of them. O’Connell St is a disgrace, especially around the corners of Talbot St and Abbey St. And before the sympathetic p.c. brigade jump in think of it like this…..the cost of one zombie alone per year….Social Welfare €18k, medical card €5k (minimum), free travel pass (why) €1200,……they are walking drains on our society….completely untouchable by authority!
Well said.. They contribute nothing to society.. From the day they leave school to the day they die they get hand out after hand out.. Even if they get sent to prision that costs the tax payer 100k a year…
However, the more you tolerate attacks on anyone, the more they will increase. Zero tolerance for such crime regardless of perpetrator or victim
Would it be a bit ‘PC’ of me to suggest that you not compare human beings to monsters?
Where are you getting €18k from?
€188 x 52 = €9776.
Maximum rent allowance they can possibly get is €90 p/w (€4680 per annum) and that is based upon them living alone in Dublin where the maximum permitted rent for them is €520 and their contribution is €30 per week. For the record – the €30 is a minimum, tenants are expected to pay more (usually tenants pay 55-60%+ of their rent).
That’s still €14,456, and in reality it would be less.
Is there an extra payment they get on top of core welfare? Because I was under the impression that they were on disability allowance..
While I agree with you to a certain extent and I do a fair bit of charity work, these humans are not members of society and most are really beyond help. The only role they play is as a warning to people of what can happen if you make a lot of bad choices. I know some got a bad start perhaps but that’s life and you’ve got to play the cards your dealt.
For those amongst is who seem to not like facts.. The way rent supplement works, as well as the maximum permitted rent levels and the minimum contributions tenants must pay toward their rent are all detailed here:
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/social_welfare/social_welfare_payments/supplementary_welfare_schemes/rent_supplement.html
And we all know €188 a week is the weekly core rate.
Anyone care to dispute the figures?
Was in Madrid. Two girls started fighting pulling each other’s hair in city centre. 10 seconds later a van with 5 cops and 2 other cop cars pulled up. 3 men were already trying to break up the fight. Cops hopped out of the vehicles, took out their batons and beat the legs off everyone in sight. Fight finished fast I can tell u and everyone fecked off fairly lively. Would love to see the same on irish streets.
Spanish police take no crap. Get on the wrong side of them you wont return for seconds. Zero tolerance is whats needed.
Imagine the response of the Irish do-gooders if the Irish police were to adopt this method of policing!!
We need zero tolerance for this sc’um. The city centre is overrun with them. Time to take the city back off the walking dead junkie sc’um.
Too true. Unlikely though. Hope the poor girls alright, mustve been traumatic. Too many bleeding hearts about the place preaching about the terrible backgrounds of $cumbags and how everyone deserves another chance even though whenever these lovely harmless souls do wind up in front of a judge they seem to have 50 odd previous convicts. Queue free legal aid, followed by BS story about how horrible their childhood was, queue the judiciary believing it leading to suspended sentence and hey presto, theyre back out on the street robbing people and everything thats not nailed to the floor and the whole merry roundabout starts again. This is the sort of crime that needs to be addressed. Ordinary people are entitled to walk around our cities in the evenings without the dregs of society trying to rob and assault them on a whim.
Corner of o Connell street/abbey street wynn hotel side you can see them openly dealing any time I’m in town. Incidentally how do junkies get free travel?
They are usually on disability allowance and the assumption is that they all get it, but I’m not sure if they do.
My partner is on disability allowance and because his illness doesn’t affect his mobility he doesn’t get a free travel pass. He has a leap card like everyone else. Lots of people on disability don’t get a free travel pass anymore.
My aunt works in citizens info and she said they’ve been clamping down on who gets free travel since they brought in the new ID cards. The old passes that you wave at the driver are being phased out and the pass will be in the ID card, to cut down on fraud.
Saw 2 people having their phones robbed and a drug deal on O Connell street yesterday. Christmas shoppers just carried on as though nothing had happened. Guards nowhere to be seen on the entire street.
I myself was nearly robbed at the AIB atm beside McDonalds on O’Connell street at 8.30 last night. 3 girls jumped on me, waving newspapers in front of the screen and hitting my back. Luckily I got them away from me without a penny but once I rang the gardai and reported it they said all they can do is keep the cameras on them for the night. Bear in mind, they were standing outside the GPO, right across the road from this crime scene where there where at least 20 garda personal. Not one of them would go over to them! Of course they will keep doing these things when they are let away with it so easily.
The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be.
Lao Tzu
@natalie, unfortunately todays modern gardai comprises of bully victims from school, that have a chip on there shoulder, and want to take it out on everybody, the easy way! Ie..drink drive check points in rural areas, searching the innocent auld sod for a bag of weed, getting a ticket for tax, taking in easy revenue by checking for speed in unnecessary places.. but dont have the balls like the ould school gardai that went in with bats drawn no matter what the situation!
I know @Ronan! I was pretty shaken up after it yesterday as there was also a group of 5 lads waiting on the girls to get the money. I felt quite let down by the gardai, not so much for myself but for other people more vulnerable than myself who could not stand up to them. God knows who there next victim was last night and it could of been prevented!
@Ronan, ur right, was in town with my dad 3 weeks ago, some scanger was shouting his head off at a garda and he just looked in the other direction, looked like he was gonnna shit himself, my dad said, back when he was younger, that bloke would have been picking his teeth up off the ground within 5 seconds
The amount of junkies walking up and dwn O’Connell street is un-nerving … whole nu meaning to meeting under the clock now !!! So turned off going into town nowadays !! Sad times !! Major shakeup needs to be done !!!
The Gardai have loads of seized heroin in big and small quantities, heres a suggestion in what to do with it. Give it back to the dealers release it back onto the street, but first cut it with rat poison and let all the junkies inject themselves with that and that will wipe out some of the problem.
Not a bad idea, John. Just surprised to see such a suggestion coming from somebody so adamantly “pro-life” on another thread.
Difference is love, the babies being murdered have done nothing wrong to no-one and never had a chance at life.
Jukies make the world a worse place for for those who live in it. Junkies have had a chance at life and failed.
Im pro death penalty too as murders deserve to die..
But babies who have done nothing but be an inconvenience, thats not a reason to be murdered.
That ok for you sweetheart?
Sweetheart? Patronising hypocritical pig. You want to kill addicts because they are an inconvenience to you and your life. Jesus would be proud. If you care so much about life, why don’t you volunteer to help make the lives of those addicts relatives better? Maybe one of the junkies you want murdered has a baby that needs a loving adoptive family – oh no wait I forgot, people like you only give a shit about them whilst they’re in the womb
Really John, the patronising tone doesn’t wash with me and does your argument no favours. I merely made an observation that your ideals are more than a little contradictory.
And that is game set and match. Great reply.
So have the babies done something wrong to someone? Two negatives make an affirmative John.
Would really love to see the 3 strike rule come into this Country.
Bus Drivers would be fecked!
Yeh, anyone who commits a crime whilst under the influence of drugs, strike them 3 times with a hammer . Should clear up the streets pretty quickly.
Can I strike anyone who leaves a banal comment three times with a hammer?
Petr, go back to where you came from.
Even though I’m a headcase….. That’s disgusting
In fairness it’s a minority in dublin I pass that steeet every day going to work and anyone else that does regularly will tell you that nothing but junkies hang around there day in day out dealing, drinking, spitting, shouting,no regard for the general public whatsoever there a poo ack of dirty anaimals..
Some day a real rain is gonna come…
Sooner the better
@rocky, thats the truth, and I thought the big freeze in 2009-10 had cleansed that problem!
Terrible thing to happen. I hope she makes a full recovery. The sad think about this is if the headline was from the US and read “US cops shot man with knife on 5th Av” – You would have a barage of comments here saying american cops use too much force…guns this that bah blah blah”
Yet here we are in Ireland where a man can get away with this on the main thoroughfare in Ireland. If armed gardai had cornered this man and shot him, it would be main news on all channels and people going daft. Yet sure if the innocent passer by gets slashed what harm…..as long as the criminal is ok. This country is weird sometimes.
Ireland is crazy as regards this stuff. One of my old neighbours beat who is a stay at home dad was feeding his baby son one morning and a junkie came in through his kitchen window. He grabbed what he had at a hand, a hoover pipe, and smacked the guy over the head. He called the guards, they took the junkie away but came back the next day and arrested him for assault. He ended up in prison for 28 days with the person who broke into his gaf.
Also worth noting about irish reactions to american police shootings. A lot of people here think its like the movies and police shoot to wound….but in reality if a policeman has drawn his gun and still.feels there is a danger, he shoots to disable which usually means a chest shot.
Crazy story you have there. Of course the official line now is you can use “reasonable force” call the cops and hide…yeah right. As more cutbacks come, crime increases…..its only a matter of time before an intruder is shot again. Then we will see Ireland go into crazy meltdown all because a thug is shot or badly wounded. Everything in this country is setup in favour of the criminal.
It certainly feels that way. Im not really hugely in favour of american style gun laws for civilians in ireland but there something to be said for it at the same time.
One of the best examples I heard of responsible use of their “protect your castle laws”, was a chap who had one of the semi assault rifles we hear about so often these days. He was upstairs on his landing after hearing noises downstairs, he shouts down to the burglars that he is armed and to take what they have and leave. They shoot at him and he fires back and kills two and injures the third.
He called the police, they sorted out the mess downstairs, he was never arrested. In fact the district attorney rang him to confirm he had done no wrong and was in the clear. He still has to live with the fact he killed two people but his family are alive and well and protected from people who had no issue with attacking the homeowner.
Innocent, law abiding citizens of Ireland need to be sure that the law protects them first. There is far too much fear about hurting an aggressor. I don’t believe in letting people just take your stuff either if you can do something about it.
I don’t think any of us want the lax american style gun laws here but there has to be a middle ground found. Protecting your home and family at all costs to the number one. I could live with having shot an intruder rather than living with a badly injured or dead family memeber.
Shock Horror! Another attack on O’Connell St. That pathetic force we call Garda would want to sort out this mess, no where to be seen in the hotspots of the city when it matters. We should be adopting the NYPD method, police stationed on O’Connell St. at all times as well as other busy streets, the by hourly walk through isn’t good enough.
Unfair to blame the Gardai when they are being constrained by constantly reducing budgets. Think we have to look further up the food chain
True, although common sense from the lads on the beat would have them walking around O’Connell st. and the surrounding areas more frequently, twice as likely to see them on Grafton St etc were there tends to be less hassle regardless. The junkie ravaged boardwalks, abbey st and westmoreland st, are fine examples of turning a blind eye. This sh#t needs to be addressed, walk down westmoreland st by the bus stops on the Bewleys side and take it all in, particularly outside the londis.
David,
There is a Gard outside the GPO all day not sure what time till, if not until 2 am or so should be, possibly even 2 after10 or a dog very rarely see dogs patrolling unlike most other cities, they’re a great deterrent and pretty good at catching people running away
There is indeed although i think they’re sole purpose is to guard the gpo!? No other use.
Plus doesn’t stop the local junkies kicking back and relaxing on the steps of the Daniel O’Connell statue and drinking their cans of cider post methadone top up during the light of day. The city is awash with junkies, Roma gypsies and all other sorts of sewer rats, clearly seeing Dublin as a playground due to the lack of law enforcement.
I have to walk down o connell st to abbey street luas to heuston to get the train home at the end of every week after working 3 13 hour shifts in a hospital overcrowded by such junkies.have thankfully never been a target for anything by them but the fear is always there.the same people who i might have to treat the following day
Siobhan, that’s a terrible commute through the city centre. It feel like Abbey street is littered with zombies, once you board the Luas more zombies join at Jervis, shouting and screaming. Once your in Heuston station, it is a relief to be back in civilisation with mannered people around you. That’s how my journey through the city centre feels.
agree, Abbey street is terrible.
Many foreign tourists walking around in that area also.
It can only be imagined, what they must think of Ireland – based on what they see on Abbey street.
Pass this stretch of street everyday for the last 15 years. Felt moved enough to write to North Inner City councillors earlier this year (only one responded) to voice my horror at the state of the place. Received letters from Store Street and the Lord Mayor to assure me that all that can be done is being done to keep O’Connell Street safe… There are no police on O’Connell Street. However, the day before the budget I counted 15 Gardai in anticipation of a protest against same, on my way home from work. Since Clery’s closed in July it has become even worse because all the dealers are in clusters outside the store as they are hidden from surveillance by the trees. The thing that puzzles me most is that it’s where most tourists hit the city first, either by Luas or Airport Bus … not to mention Dublin tour buses and what they see is like (as someone said earlier) a scene from the Walking Dead. It is so utterly frustrating to think that our “city fathers” are quite obviously ignoring this problem and are happy to let the rest of us run the gautlet everyday in O’Connell Street. I don’t think this incident is going to make any difference to the situation unfortunately.
Start a petition. Im sure 10s of thousands of people will sign it. Demand they sort out this problem that is destroying the image of Dublin.
This is disgraceful. I walk up O’Connell street everyday on my way home from work and there could be a group of 20+ drug users hanging around the street at any given time. I’m not sure what can be done to move them but its awful when you feel unsafe in your own city.
I’ve never felt this unease in any European city I’ve ever traveled to. Hopefully this will mean a crackdown from the Gardai but we shouldn’t hold our breath!!
O’Connell Street was called “Dublin’s bustling O’Connell Street”
Yes, bustling with junkies, dealers and beggars!
Disgraceful.
The f*****s hope girl is ok
The Gardai have some serious questions to answer about not moving on the junkies that have made that junction their home 24/7. Everyone and their dog knows what goes on there all day. In any other city they would be moved on. Definetely the Gardai’s responsibility.
Great idea, bus the junkies out to the Wicklow mountains every morning and let them walk back to the hostels at night. Should get them fit , all that walking and fresh air.
Hey, what did the Wicklow mountains ever do to you? ;)
I’ve been a victim of these scvmbags hanging around O Connell myself, tried to rob my phone and got a good hiding til more of them decided to join in, gardai were swiftly on the scene and arrested one if them but like the garda said it won’t stop them they’ll be at it again during the week, it’s time for some vigilante justice I think it’s getting completely out of hand.
We need Charles Bronson on the beat downtown O’Connell St
I like shoot to kill ! That would work
Prison is not a deterrent. Its seen as a b&b or a safe haven to get your head down for a rest.
The system doesn’t work. The Gardai know it, the government ignore it whilst we post opinions about it on the internet.
Nobody knows how to fix it so it will continue . Democracy does not work.
Kids are growing up with no fear of the Gardai because we all know they are helpless to do anything against minors because of all the doogooders .
Where i grew up everyone knew a certain garda would take no shit from minors and it worked.
This nannied state created this situation and is powerless to change it.
So does everyone think this young girl was just hanging around minding her own business ?
I wouldn’t make judgements till all the facts come out, tbh.
It doesn’t matter stuart – Point is that the city centre is falling apart and being ruined because of these minks!!
Why can’t the garda just take all the junkies and lock them in concentration camps… Hitler had right idea just done it with the wrong people
Like some sort of ‘final solution’……..then move on to those who are obsessively ‘fond of their drink’ or anyone ‘not well’ with mental illness etc etc……….open til NEIN!!!!
It would be quite a good solution in fairness… Have them locked away down in Westmeath or somewhere like that
@SinAssist
It would be a “final solution”to the problem of skum bags who commit atrocities like slashing a young girls face.
DUBLIN CITY IS LIKE A CHAPTER SIX OUT OF THE WALKING DEAD PLACE IS GONE TO SHITE AND SMELLING LIKE IT TOO
These crimes don’t just happen on O’Connel street, They are widespread around the entire city.
The biggest factor here is Skum bags don’t fear the judicial system. At worst they’ll get 12 months or a slap on the wrist, or even better, get away with it!
A concentration style prison camp would be a great start, 12 hours forced labour every day and whipped if you don’t work hard enough. Even if you put a good 12 hour shift in, you still get 20 lashes every day for the rest of your sentence due to the hideous crime you committed.
Also women. never travel alone, safety in numbers!
Learn self defense. I recommend Taekwondo.
And buy a god pepper spray online, Ebay is a gift.
What’s a god pepper spray? ;)
Where are the cameras? Surely O’Connell street is surveilled.
Shatter is more interested in silencing Political Activists and stopping people growing plants than this, f***ing disgrace that man!!
I work on store street, most lunchtimes when I go out and when I’m in my way home I really feel intimidated. And it angers me… It’s my city after all, junkies and their likes exist but they do seem to rule the roost in certain parts of our city. I sigh in relief when I cross the river and get to me bus stop…life is hard enough without worrying about walking our own streets. Junkies have problems, and I’m not unsympathetic to that… But then they antagonise me and stare me out… Leaves me feeling very unsettled and vulnerable
I’ve been in London many times, been all over on the tube and I’ve only ever seen one junkie. Been in Glasgow and Rome twice, again the same thing travelling all over and saw nothing. I’ve walked down back streets in Rome and have never felt safer. What is it with Dublin that the guards won’t sort it out!
I live in London. We have lots of crack heads around. Take a walk around Soho. We had a problem in London 15 years ago similar to Dublin today. The council moved the methadone clinics out of the tourist areas.
Then I don’t believe that you’ve been “all over” those cities. Unless you had blinkers on or were just incredibly fortunate every time.
Considering Glasgow is known as Junkie capital of Europe. Id say you do have blinkers on when you travel abroad. After Scotland, france and Italy have the most junkies per head of population.
You’ve been in Glasgow and never seen someone strung out? Would you stop, it has a massive heroin issue.
I think it’s good that the drugs alcohol addiction is so visible. It shows we need to do something about it, in a positive way.
Not push it under the carpet like other cities. I Suppose it’s easier for people when it’s out if sight out of mind.
Just to say there are many on here living their lives in fear. Can’t be a good way of living been so harsh, lack of empathy and been easily lead by the media.
I avoid the north side of Dublin
Ridiculous response!
He has a point. Im from the northside and have had someone try steal my mobile when I waiting for a bus home off abbey street at around 10pm…this has happened at 4 times since 2010. Thankfully they never got it off me.
Any time im in the city centre late at night now, I get a dart home from pearse street with no hassle.
No point in denying the northside/southside divide any longer. It is there. All we can do is deal with it and sort out who let it happen.
There are plenty of streets and surrounding areas either side of the Liffey you can be mugged in if you’re hangin’ around long enough…….petty latent snobbery isn’t to solve or retrieve anything!
Sure, you are right there are plenty of streets on the other side of the Liffey that aren’t so savoury but I am talking about one of the main areas on the northside for commuters,student, pensioners and tourists to wait for a bus to take them elsewhere. You never see the amount of junkies hanging around drinking and making people feel uncomfortable on the southside that you do on the north.
Its not snobbery to recognise that it is a major issue and it needs to be dealt with.
I get where Olaf is coming from. As a dedicated Northsider, I’d prefer to get a bus home at night from College Green instead of O’Connell St, but there are plenty of dodgy areas after dark just south too: south quays, Christchurch…
Just don’t see the purpose of being so anal about which side of the river the hotspots are on when all are so central and relevant to most commuters depending on which routes used and how often etc!
Brian has a valid point. If something looks like shit, and smells like shit then it must be shit. Don’t step in it.
Ah no! You’d get a few slingers around College Green/Temple Bar/ Westmorland Street also :P
South side, ballyfermot, ringsend, tallaght etc etc… Cop on with your north side bullsh*t!
Where is the Garda too busy looking at Facebook.
Brains to burn Daniel
I pass by the Dail on Kildare Street every day while going to work. There is always a Garda standing outside supposedly keeping watch. I sware to god everyday I pass they are looking on the phones. Every time. And the times they are not they are chatting to tourists.
In fairness, it must be a helluva boring job.
There’s lots of this stuff happening in dublin city centre on a daily basis, I doubt a lot of it gets reported. I was punched in the back of the head by a group of teenage girls on georges street last week. No one said or did anything to help, apart from one guy who asked me if I was ok. From what I’ve seen most irish people will turn a blind eye to people being attacked, robbed etc. And as for the gardai, what’s the point in contacting them?
All these comments here would probably have more impact if you were to send them to Garda in store street or any other representative body . It’s a disgrace what happened. But talking about it here or any other social network ain’t gonna do anything. Voice your opinion to the people who matter , then something might just change ! …. It’s just a thought .
Well there’s a few empty Army Bks around the country I’m sure they wud fit nicely in there with a few very nice Military Policemen to keep them company !!!!
In Dublin’s fair city, it’s not a Dublin thing it a drug thing. When somebody is hooked they are hooked. Solve the problem, not the symptom.
Jasus I have been living in the country ten years now and I was planning on bringing kids to dublin city n stay in hotel and see the Xmas lights over Xmas . I don’t think I will now maybe I have been “countryfied” but I would be afraid visiting dublin . Didn’t think it had gotten that bad . Shocking poor girl
On my travels around Ireland over the years i saw more punch ups and fights in the smaller towns of Galway and Kilkenny than i ever saw in Dublin. Compared to all other European capitals or large cities, Dublin is one of the safest.
Unbelievable second time I’ve heard of this happening in town in recent weeks! Security needs to be tightened! Anyone should be allowed walk streets of Dublin without been in fear of something like this happening
Did this actually happen in Dublin and is being reported ? Are we sure it’s not cork limerick Galway or somewhere else outside the pale ???
Yawn.
There’s a young girl in hospital with serious injuries and all you care about is you anti Dublin chip on your shoulder,
I’d say your parents are proud of you
Oh FFS!
Cupcake the amount of venomous comments on a thread about a stabbing in limerick doesn’t matter – no??
Its so unfair blaming junkies for everything. Everybody should hug a junkie and talk to them and give them money as they need our help. Poor angels.
I’ve heard that ABC networks are shooting the next series of The Walking Dead in Dublin to save on the makeup and wardrobe depts budgets.
Conscription. 2 years training with the PDF after you’ve left school. It’ll teach the shcum how to respect themselves, their communities and the general public.
Conor,
This is put forward on a regular basis in the UK as well as here.
Why should the decent lads and lasses who volunteer have thes sc****** next to them, possibly sharing a room. Anyway first positive drug test and they’d be out anyway
Bring back the Black & Tans. They’d sort out the filth on our streets in no time at all.
The Garda bring them in charge them ,then they get free legal aid and the courts let them back out on the street .again ,then the whole process starts over again ,and again ,all law no justice !
And people think Limerick is bad….
To be fair, limerick has the population of a Dublin suburb.
They closed the Garda Station on O’Connell Street some years ago. Easy knowing none of “the great and the good” would be walking down there any time after 5.00pm!
A lot of class hatred on display on this thread. Shameful really. Ask yourself why people end up on drugs.
@ Petr Tarasov
people end up on drugs because
we are cowards
we let the government walk all over us
we let gerry adams stay in leinster house after he lied over jean mcconville dead body
we still go to mass after what the church did to little kids
there are people stuck in drugs in every village /city in ireland
we know who they are and we do nothing
@petr, im just glad I dont have to walk the streets with these de-evolutionised junkie animals, wasting my tax and fresh air…
Does the CCTV not pick up on that street?
That’s really terrible thought, your not safe anywhere.
Well hello Elaine wit woo !
and if there was CCTV on every street
there would be a prime time debate
is it right ?
is it wrong ?
privacy invaded blah blah blah
Ok, I’m scared to come back to Dublin! Sounds like it’s changed a lot in less than 3 years.. Shouldn’t be, I live in Chicago, so
let people away with this kind of behaviour and they will repeat it. time to tackle these kinds of assaults and knife crimes now!
I think it is time for a volunteer city watch team to be setup, not heavy handed but large in number.
Having been in this area a lot you are confronted with junkies which after 9pm out number the normal citizens. The Garda are not to be seen around the area after dark at all. It is like walking into a really expensive urban ghetto, it’s the old west but there’s no sheriff in town and the control is handled by the walking dead it’s a disgrace for our capitals Main Street to be ground zero for our very real drug problem
An eye 4 an eye !
@Daragh Perhaps you could add to the heading that its O`Connell Street Dublin, as there are many O`Connell Streets around Ireland
I go to college there as DIT have a building there. It’s a taxi rank but presume there was no taxis at that time to witness it…
Some throw away comments have been made about setting up a vigilante group but I think it is a feasible idea. In New York the subway had gone the same way and the guardian angels were set up. A similar system where volunteers with walkie talkies and identifiable cloths keep watch in Dublin could be cool. Even better if the Gardai supported the initiative. Train the members in self defence and the legal aspects. Only concern would be would they be screwed over by the Gardai and court system.
I was walking up O’Connell street 3 weeks ago and had to get a ambulance for a guy who slit his wrist sitting in a door way. O,Connell st is not a safe place and it is getting worse when is this country going to cop on
You need someone like lugs branigans
the gardai took sides with SHELL against irish people
remember that
have your say