Councillor seeks emergency system to fight rural crime

KILRUSH Town Councillor Ian Lynch has requested Minister for Justice, Alan Shatter, introduce a community alert scheme using internet phones. He said the system he had in mind would ensure up to 15 people could be contact at the same time, in the event, for example, of a person’s house being broken into.

“In light of the increase in malicious attacks on the elderly and those residing in rural areas, this council asks that the Minister for Justice introduce a community alert scheme using a voice-over internet phone (VIOP) to allow community members to alert up to 15 users at once,” Councillor Lynch said in proposing his motion.

“This will prove especially beneficial in rural areas with the closure of rural garda stations leading to an increased response time to emergency calls from the nearest members of An Garda Síochána,” he added.

The Kilrush town councillor feels that elderly people are in particular danger.

“We have all heard of the malicious attacks on elderly and rural dwellers in the last few months that have shocked and disgusted us. The reality is that they are becoming more common and frequent and rural Ireland is suffering, If we keep going the way we are going, we may as well close off roads and say ‘no entry beyond here rural Ireland is deserted’. People are genuinely afraid to stay in their homes, elderly people are afraid to sleep by night for fear of such attacks and find themselves trying to stay awake and sleeping longer during the day. This is no way of life for any citizen of this country,” Councillor Lynch added.

He said the VIOP method can work in tandem with traditional 999 calls.

“The system is not to take away from the emergency call but while waiting for emergency services to attend, communities can work together to help each other. The system is very effective where people need assistance. Unfortunately, we have come to a stage that communities have to come together to fend for themselves. The cost is less than €10 and I would hope that the minister’s department can establish their own system to help further reduce the costs and make our communities safe,” he said. 

“The rural garda station situation is similar to the A&E saga that has been ongoing for years. Services have been cut without appropriate measures being put in place. The A&E crisis has seen communities come together to provide health care with local defibrillator programmes and now I am calling on the minister to assist those left in rural Ireland to ensure their safety and well being,” he concluded.