Armed gardaí drafted in for Lakes rally

A major Garda operation, including two armed response teams, is under way today in Killarney, Co Kerry, where a motor rally is expected to draw thousands of enthusiasts and hundreds of so-called "boy racers".

Cars are converging on the tourist town for the annual Rally of the Lakes and were set to gather in convoy at points on motorways, according to gardaí.

One of the biggest gatherings was likely to be outside Limerick, according to Garda intelligence.

Sergeant Dermot O’Connell of Killarney gardaí said the two regional armed support units, from Limerick and Cork, were due to arrive in the town.

The units are equipped with taser guns and other equipment capable of dealing with large groups and with violent public disorder.

Twenty-five extra gardaí have been drafted in, along with additional traffic units.

The district court in Killarney has seen dozens of young men on charges of dangerous driving following the rallies of 2013 and 2012. Evidence at some of the hearings revealed that hundreds of cars gathered on the N22 Killarney-Cork road in the early hours on consecutive nights to carry out stunts.

At the opening last year, 1,000 vehicles entered the town in convoy, but even more were expected last night.

Several car parks in residential areas and around the national park have been closed off.

Sgt O’Connell said: “This is by far and away one of the most significant policing operations of the year for us and one in which we experience great difficulty in relation to public disorder and traffic disorder.”

The rally is sponsored by cartell.ie, with Fáilte Ireland and Ordnance Survey of Ireland among its other backers.