Green day: 50,000 expected in Cork City for parade

Anyone attending a parade  is advised to plan their journey in advance and arrive early

Young musicians Jack O'Shea and Corina Ní Shé-Ní Riain play with the school brass band at Gaelscoil An Teaghlaigh Naofa, Ballyphehane, on Wednesday Picture: Larry Cummins

Up to 50,000 people are expected to flood into Cork city centre today as St Patrick’s Day celebrations kick off across the country, in full fanfare for the first time since before the pandemic.

An Garda Síochána have urged anyone attending a parade today to plan their journey in advance and arrive early. 

Gardaí will have a visible enforcement presence across the country over the St Patrick’s weekend, targeting drivers under the influence of alcohol and drugs, and those consuming alcohol in public places.

Parade-goers should prepare for a cloudy and showery morning, breaking into drier and brighter weather in the afternoon. 

Gusty south-west winds will also ease as the day goes on, with highest temperatures in Munster of between 11C and 13C. 

The Cork city parade is due to kick off at 1pm from South Mall, before making its way down Grand Parade, up St Patrick’s Street, and finishing at Merchants Quay. 

It will be live-streamed on Cork City Council’s website from 12:45pm, and MC’ed by previous Grand Marshall, Olympian, and Red FM presenter Rob Heffernan.

St Patrick's Girls School pupils Indie and Isabelle, who took part in a combined 'Là Glas' day, which started with a walk around the community at Gardiner's Hill, Cork. Picture: Dan Linehan

Wheelchair users and those with special needs will be accommodated in a special area on St Patrick's Street, and there will be Irish sign language interpreter services available.

Those travelling by public transport are urged to check timetables, as Irish Rail has advised all routes are operating on revised schedules, while Bus Éireann and Expressway services are operating on Sunday schedules both on Thursday and Friday.

Information on road closures and diversions, bus re-routing, and Park and Ride bus facilities are all listed on www.corkstpatricksfestival.ie along with a full listing of festival events.

‘Day of Remembrance and Recognition’

Thursday’s public holiday will be followed by another on Friday, a once-off ‘Day of Remembrance and Recognition’ for volunteers, frontline workers, and those who lost their lives during the pandemic.

The four-day weekend will prove an extra boost for tourism, as indications from Cork’s hospitality sector show visitor numbers even “stronger than expected”, according to Cork City Council. 

Some 26,000 passengers are expected to travel through Cork Airport over the course of the extended St Patrick’s holiday.

The HSE expects the extra-long weekend to put additional pressure on emergency departments, on top of a usually very busy St Patrick’s Day. 

Anne O’Connor, chief operations officer with the HSE, urged anyone with a non-urgent situation to “help our staff through a challenging time by looking at other healthcare options where possible”. 

Coisins Aoife Mannix and Gearóid Ó Mhurchú from Ranga 5 of Gaelscoil An Teaghlaigh Naofa taking part in the school parade on Wednesday. Picture: Larry Cummins.

In his national St Patrick’s Day address, President Michael D Higgins sent his “warmest greetings and sincere good wishes to our Irish family across the world, and to all those who have been, remain and are working to be such good friends to Ireland”.

He urged the people of Ireland, and the world, to carry forward the “generous spirit” of St Patrick and stand in solidarity with those across the globe who are “vulnerable and in need”.

A dark shadow has now been cast across our world as we witness the unfolding events in Ukraine … We, the peoples of the world must now and with urgency unite our voices in demanding an immediate ceasefire, respect for humanitarian law, and the withdrawal of Russian troops. 

"On this day during which we honour our patron saint, Patrick, a person whose life embodied the values of solidarity and a shared sense of humanity, let us do so by resolving to renew our commitment to upholding those values that guided his life,” he said.

While the colour green is still expected to be worn and waved proudly on Thursday's global celebration of Irishness, Tourism Ireland has said it is not promoting its usual “global greening” of over 700 icons across the world this year as a mark of respect to the situation in Ukraine, and looks forward to international landmarks being illuminated in green “in what [they] hope will be a more peaceful world in 2023”.

The Office of Public Works has announced that this year’s greening will be replaced with a gesture of solidarity with Ukraine, as 41 Irish landmarks are instead illuminated in the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag over St Patrick’s weekend.