Gardai were maintaining a vigil at a field near Loughlinstown Hospital, Co Dublin early this morning after defusing a confrontation between local residents and a group of traveller families.
About 30 traveller caravans which had earlier moved from Sandyford entered a field near the hospital last night. The traveller families were confronted by angry local residents who wanted to stop them establishing a new site in the field. Gardai said they went to the scene at about 10 p.m. and found "a few locals were a bit irate, and the situation was getting heated". The Garda said it established an all-night presence at the site "to prevent any breach of the peace". Locals were told their concerns could be tackled this morning.
Earlier yesterday the traveller families had moved from a site in Blackglen Road, Sandyford, from which they were facing eviction today.
The owners of the Sandyford site, Dwyer Nolan Developments Ltd, had been granted a committal order by the High Court last week, following the failure by the travellers to obey a court order of July 7th. The order was due to have been served on travellers remaining on the site this morning. Mr Jim O'Brien, a spokesman for the travellers, said they were distressed at having to leave. He said recent events had "turned travellers against settled people".
Travellers at the site accused local residents of using a digger to block off council land further up the road two weeks ago, and of cutting off water to a local pump.
As the first of the 37 caravans moved out at about 6 p.m., they passed council land surrounded by a large mound of earth, preventing access. Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council said yesterday it had not blocked off the site, where it had originally intended to build a temporary 20-bay halting site.
A number of local residents successfully appealed to the Supreme Court in February to prevent the council accommodating the travellers there. The travellers moved into the Dwyer Nolan site earlier this month, following an order to leave another site off the Woodside Road, behind Lamb Doyle's public house.