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Large youth gatherings in Galway city center and at multiple house parties last night have been condemned as “insane” by local representatives.
As a consequence, calls have been made this morning to restrict access to certain public spaces until the spread of Covid-19 can be controlled.
Up to 1,000 people, mostly young people, gathered near the Spanish Arch on Monday night when college term began, while large groups also gathered on Shop Street and other venues around the city.
Images shared widely on social media platforms showed large numbers of young people in the Claddagh Basin, across the river from the Spanish Arch.
Gardaí was also called to a site near the Corrib River in the Engineering Building on the NUI Galway campus, locations in Ballybane and Renmore and to at least a dozen house parties in accommodations believed to be rented by city students. .
NUI Galway described the events of last night as “deplorable” and said that it had “repeatedly appealed to the best judgment of our students and reminded them of their responsibilities.”
In a statement, university officials said they had “worked to ensure that the experience of university life this year is safe, supportive and enjoyable, despite the limitations imposed by the pandemic. NUI Galway leadership meets this morning with the Gardaí and Galway City Council on these incidents ”.
Shop Street Galway right now … when it’s about to be announced tomorrow that we could go to a bigger lockdown … a big slap in the face to everyone who is trying so hard to distance themselves socially, to healthcare workers and friends and sick relatives. pic.twitter.com/30Fk5CPbvB
– shifi (@ShifiStarkid) September 28, 2020
He said that “the vast majority of our students are doing their best to stay safe and help prevent the spread of Covid-19, we will not hesitate to address any breach of public health guidelines in accordance with our Student Code of Conduct (which has penalties that include expulsion) “.
Independent Councilwoman Colette Connolly said the events were “insane, to be honest.”
He pointed out that many older people live in the Claddagh that overlooks the Spanish Arch “they are scared and sick and tired of this, they are sick of having to pick up the garbage left behind. Either we have statutes that prohibit the consumption of alcohol in public or we don’t. “
She said that “young people seem to think they have a God-given right to appropriate public spaces for drinking and they don’t. There has to be an acknowledgment that it is unbearable. It is not about discouraging young people, but they are exceptional times and people have to show a little courage and discipline ”.
He said limiting access to the Spanish Arch, as happened at the height of the lockdown earlier this year, would be a last resort, but would have to be considered “as Galway now appears to be heading to Level 3.”
Fine Gael Councilor Eddie Hoare said he had been getting “a lot of phone calls and messages about it and it certainly looked very bad, there were almost a thousand people in the Spanish Arch at one point.”
He said the scenes “certainly send the wrong message but I would not want this to be an attack on students and we have to be aware that we are talking about very young people and many of them would only be starting college for the first time. Having said that everyone must change their way of thinking and we have to work together to achieve it. “
NUIG student union president Pádraic Toomey condemned last night’s scenes and said only a “small minority” of the student body in Galway had been involved.
“We have 30,000 students in the university and most of those people follow public health guidelines,” he said.
He noted that drinking outside in the Spanish Arch had been common throughout the confinement, even when the university was closed. “We have a duty to point out when something is wrong and this is wrong.”
He said the student union’s main focus this year would be to support “people who are struggling to cover the costs of their education and can barely afford the rent, much less buy drinks.”
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