Crime & Law

Woman seriously injured following assault at hospital in Kilkenny

Garda helicopter deployed to search for a male suspected of carrying out attack on catering worker

Gardaí are currently at the scene, outside the outpatients section of the hospital. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times
Gardaí are currently at the scene, outside the outpatients section of the hospital. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times
Sarah Slater
Mon Apr 29 2024 - 13:20

A woman was injured in an assault at an orthopaedic hospital in Kilkenny on Monday.

The incident happened in an outpatient area on the Kilcreene Hospital campus at around 8.30am. HSE sources said a female catering worker was the victim of the attack in which a weapon is understood to have been used. A Garda helicopter was deployed to search for a male suspected of carrying out the attack.

Gardaí kept watch at the hospital for a period after the incident and people were prevented from entering or leaving the campus, with employees advised to stay indoors. Members of the force later spent time taking statements from witnesses and gathering forensic evidence to assist the investigation.

A number of lines of inquiry are being followed by gardaí including that the assailant was known to the woman injured in the incident.

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A Garda spokesman said a report of an alleged assault at a medical institution in Kilkenny was received at around 8.30am on Monday. “A woman is receiving treatment at St Luke’s General Hospital in Kilkenny for injuries believed at this time to be non-life-threatening.”

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Kilkenny Garda station on (056) 777 5000.

The Ireland East Hospital Group said it was working with An Garda Síochána “following an incident that took place in Kilcreene Regional Orthopaedic Hospital this morning”.

“Staff and management are fully cooperating with the gardaí and their investigation,” it said in a statement.