by Bernie English
CHILDREN screamed and parents watched in horror as a man drove into a Limerick protest, hitting one of the protestors with his car.
Ironically, the protest was to highlight the dangers to children from drivers who break the lights at Claughaun where pupils cross the road to St Brigid’s National School.
MIke Murphy, a father of three from Oakwood, ended up on the bonnet of a car after the driver tried to get past the line of protesters.
Parents had been blocking the crossing, letting cars through a few at a time.
“We were walking back and forth across the road. The Gardaí said we were perfectly entitled to protest as long as we kept moving. Some cars were delayed then one driver moved onto the wrong side of the road, beeping his horn and continued on. I was in his path and ended up on the bonnet,” Mr Murphy told the Limerick Post.
Mr Murphy, a first-aide trainer with the Red Cross, said his children, who were accompanying him became hysterical.
“They were screaming and crying. There were people in that line pushing buggies and others had children with them”.
Witnesses said the driver had two children in the car with him.
The angry parents took to the streets to protest over an unconnected incident in which three young children had to be snatched to safety as a car broke the lights outside the school.
Sharon Lenihan, one of the protest organisers, described how, in the earlier incident, a woman grabbed the children and managed to pull them to safety.
“We’ve been asking for help here for years. Drivers in a hurry to get to work are constantly breaking the lights,” Ms Lenihan told the Limerick Post.
Gardai confirmed that the incident during the protest is under investigation but no charges had been brought at time of going to press.
