Gardaí hamstrung by closure of Letterkenny A&E

The closure of the Emergency Department at Letterkenny General Hospital (LGH) means local gardaí are unable to take blood or urine samples from suspected drink drivers injured in collisions.

Following measures introduced in the new Road Traffic Bill in 2011, gardaí were given the power to have a blood or urine sample taken from a driver hospitalised following a collision.

However, as the LGH Emergency Department is closed as result of flooding two weeks ago, anyone seriously injured in road collisions in the north of the county is being flown directly to Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry.