Following the driver’s ramming of three Garda cars, five children were rescued from a van in Cork.
In the incident, two Gardaí were wounded.
Last night in Cork, five kids had been saved from a van after a male driver in his 30s wrecked two police cars and three other vehicles.
None of the children, one of whom is thought to be an infant, were hurt in the incident, but two Gardaí required non-life threatening medical attention.
The driver of the van was seen driving recklessly on the N8 near Fermoy at around 9 o’clock in the evening as he approached Cork City.
Gardaí were notified and stopped the car, where they found the children.
“At approximately 9.45pm, gardaí signalled for a van to stop in the Mahon area”, a Garda spokesperson revealed.
The Garda spokesperson also said “the van failed to stop and proceeded to ram a Garda vehicle. A short time later, the van stopped but when Gardaí attempted to engage with the driver, the Garda vehicle was rammed again.”
After arriving at the scene, two other Garda vehicles tried to block the van, but both of them were rammed.
Concerns over the children’s safety prompted The Regional Support Unit to be contacted, and “a managed containment operation ensued.”
It was also noted that ” a stringer device was successfully deployed at Cars Hill and the vehicle was brought to a halt.”
Following the incident, two garda cars in total sustained significant damage, while three other vehicles only sustained minor damage.
The driver was taken into custody shortly after 10 o’clock at Bridewell Garda Station, where he is being held in accordance with Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act of 1984.
A spokesperson said, “All members involved are receiving support from their colleagues and local Garda Management and the wider organisational supports of the Peer Support Service, chief medical officer and 24-hour counselling service have been provided if required.”
Anyone with information on this incident or the video footage is urged to call the Garda Confidential Line at 1800 666 111 or any Garda station, including Anglesea Garda Station at (021) 452 2000.
