Gardai in Waterford experienced a relatively quiet Christmas although officers remained vigilant and actively involved in crime prevention duties. They were also kept busy on foot and traffic patrols not to mention dealing with the consequences of the ice and frost.
There were a number of domestic incidents that required the presence of the gardai and there were twelve arrests for violent or unruly behaviour on St Stephen’s Day.
Gardai were busy on checkpoint duty over the holiday and seven people were arrested on suspicion of drunk driving in the five day period from Christmas Eve to Monday evening.
The Tramore area was also quiet over the long weekend. A spokesperson said there had been several arrests including a small number for suspected drink driving. Sadly, a Ferrybank based Cork native lost his life on December 23rd when his car and a lorry were involved in a collision near Kilmacthomas at about 4pm. It is understood Michael Cashman (38) was travelling home to Cork for Christmas when the accident occurred.
There were two major fires over the Christmas period. On Christmas Day, there was a serious blaze at Clegg’s Pub in Carrick-on-Suir where nobody was injured. However, a man had a narrow escape on Sunday night when a fire broke out in an apartment complex at Mary Street in Dungarvan. A passer-by noticed smoke coming from the building and alerted gardai and the fire services who rescued a resident who was living on the third floor.
