Safety concerns halted Cork City lights switch-on plans

Future events would have to be ticketed following safety review 

Lord Mayor Cllr Deirdre Forde, Oisín Robinson and Lorraine O'Sullivan join together to light Cork City up for Christmas. Picture: Alison Miles/OSM

Concerns about crowd crushing and limited access for emergency services to Cork’s St Patrick’s St have emerged as the main reasons why the plug was pulled on a public Christmas lights switch-on ceremony in the city this year.

Officials are now considering alternative formats for next year but have warned that any future large-scale festive lights switch-on would need to be staged in “a controlled environment” and is likely to be ticketed with limited capacity.