Shannon Safety Consultation - the hard way.

clare | miscellaneous | news report Thursday July 10, 2003 16:54 by Tim Hourigan - Refuelling Peace

safety risk to let people attend safety consultation at airport.

Yesterday, Wednesday 9th July, there was a public consultation for concerned members of the public to see and comment upon the proposed public safety zones around Shannon Airport.
Yesterday evening, four concerned citizens attended this airport safety consultation, albeit after being delayed for almost 60 minutes by Airport Police and Gardai on the grounds of airport safety! and they say irony is dead.

As you all know by know, my friends and I hold the safety of Shannon airport and the local population dear to our hearts.
When we heard about the public consultations on the safety zones we decided we should make our own submissions and indeed ask questions.
Worryingingly, it seems the models used to plot the risk contours do not include things like planes full of missiles or giant C-5s making emergency landings.
We decided that these issues should be brought to the attention of the consultants hired to do the study and meet the public. The consultations were being held at the Great Southern Hotel opposite the airport terminal.
Conor and I have a High Court injunction against trespassing at the airport, but we had lawful business to attend to so we were not trespassing (and for the record, we've never been charged with trespassing).

At 6pm yesterday evening, Conor, Joe, Aisling and I headed up to the airport in a taxi, having just missed the bus. The consultations were on until 7:30pm and we wanted to get there in plenty of time.

As our taxi stopped at the checkpoint we were asked where we were going. We replied that we were going to the safety consultations in the hotel.
The Garda took a closer look at us and told the driver to do a u-turn as he was not letting us up.
We paid the driver and got out of the car.
The Garda asked our names and addresses and was given them. He identified himself as Gda Dave Buckley (CL 277).
When asked why we could not pass to attend a public consultation he said "because I'm asking you to wait here until someone arrives".
No matter how we asked for a proper reason, he didn't give one.
Shortly afterwards 5 more Gardai arrived in various vehicles as well as an Airport Police Inspector.
So we now had a Garda Sgt, an armed Detective Garda, 4 uniformed Gardai (CL 277, 129,132 and 280) and 2 Airport Police confronting four people armed with bits of paper (submissions for the consultation)

We were asked our names and this time our addresses too, which we gave and which were noted by the Gardai.
The airport police inspector Mr. Hogan then decided to demand names and addresses from us.
I gave him my name and asked for his.

We were told by the Sgt. that"in the interests of airport security" none of us were allowed to pass.
The much over-rated high court injunction was mentioned once more even though Joe and Aisling are not covered by it, and going about lawful business does not breach it.

We asked how we would be considered to be a threat to airport security, especially as our purpose was to meet and talk to consultants about airport security. We got no reply.

We pointed out that between the lot of them they could easily follow us up to the hotel and see that we were telling the truth about this meeting.
We pointed out the meeting had been advertised on the radio and in the press as open to the public.

One of the Gardai asked me if we were recording the incident. I told him I was not recording it except for with pen and paper, I could not speak for anyone else.

Aisling got in touch with the consultants at the hotel and told them that she was trying to make a submission but was being blocked by the authorities. The consultants replied that they had been told that we were all banned from the airport!

Various phone calls were made to media contacts and legal people just to have a note made of the blockade.

After much telephoning and repeated requests to pass by, Aisling decided she was just going to walk up as she had been given no straight answer as to why she should not be allowed to attend this meeting.

She was restrained by 4 Gardai and not allowed up the road.

The Airport Police Inspector then started complaining that people hadn't given him names and addresses. He accused me of denying him my name and address.
I told him I had given him my name, and that the Gardai had all my details already.
He persisted, at which point it was pointed out to him that he needs to have a warrant card to demand peoples names.
He failed to produce one saying he didn't have it on him but would show it to us in a while. his APO colleague then produced his card and asked Conor to leave. Conor argued that, seeing as his boss was promising to show him a warrant card that he would leave after that happened.
At 19:10 APO Inspector Hickey arrived down at the scene. There was a bit of a huddle, it was overheard that the other Inspectors warrant card had not been found.
At 19:15 we were told that they now had the manpower to escort us to the meeting.
by the time we walked up there it was 19:28 but thankfully the consultants waited on a while to talk to us and hear our submissions about military flights, bird strikes, the risk to industrial plant in the area etc.
We were told that the models did not include risk of military cargo explosions.
After a brief chat and a cup of tea we left the hotel and went home, about an hour later than planned.