GARDAÍ had to be called to the sports pitches at University College Dublin on six occasions during lockdown after members of the public flouted Covid-19 rules by meeting up in groups to play sport and refusing to stop the activity.
spokeswoman for the university said the pitches have been actively monitored since the beginning of Level 5 restrictions on December 29 by a number of means including monitoring of CCTV where available, as well as vehicle and foot patrols by security staff.
When a group is discovered by security staff, they are approached and reminded of public health guidance around exercise and sporting events in line with Level 5 restrictions and typically members of the public comply with this guidance.
“There have been 21 instances recorded since the beginning of Level 5 restrictions where individuals initially refused to comply with instructions from security staff to leave sporting facilities.
“Each of these instances were escalated to the campus duty manager who directed available resources to the area concerned to ensure that social distancing was observed.
“In six of these cases, the campus duty manager contacted Donnybrook Garda Station to request assistance intervention.
“In addition, during the school mid-term last week, and better weather conditions, we have increased the presence of security throughout the campus.”
Online Editors
Source: Irish News
