Garda operation begins at north Dublin’s Thornton Hall amid works for asylum seeker accommodation

An Garda Siochána has moved significant resources into place around the Thornton Hall site in north Co Dublin as contractors have moved onto the lands to prepare it as accommodation for international protection applicants.

Teams of uniform gardaí were deployed at different locations around the perimeter on Wednesday evening and some were carrying Public Order Unit helmets in the event unrest may flare.

Garda Headquarters has taken the unusual step of issuing a statement denying “misinformation, disinformation and fake news” circulating suggesting gardaí were assisting in “secretly” moving international protection applicants into the area, clarifying none were at the site.

Instead, the security operation put in place on Wednesday, which was significant, has effectively seen the Garda take control of strategically important locations in a bid to enable works to be carried out. The Garda operation is intended to try and avoid the violent scenes witnessed in Coolock, north Dublin, last month when gardaí tried to moved contractors onto the former Crown Paints factory, which has been earmarked for IPAs.

The Irish Times visited Thornton Hall on Wednesday evening and saw Garda teams at the entrances to the site and at one area where a protest’ camp was situated. The only gardaí visible were uniformed members of the force.

Steel crowd-control fencing, like that used outside Dáil Eireann to combat violent protesters in recent years, had been erected to secure some of the campus while concrete structures had been put in place in other areas.

The Garda operation, which involves Public Order Unit members on standby and the use of cellular vehicles – containing cells for prisoners in the event multiple arrests were made – has been put in place to ensure contractors could move equipment and workers onto the site.

One arrest was made on Wednesday when a woman in her 50s was detained for alleged public order offences. She was expected to appear before the courts on Thursday morning.

The Garda operation was due to remain in place overnight into Thursday morning and also through coming days, depending on the level of protest, if any, that emerges in the area, which is relatively remote.

Garda Headquarters on Wednesday evening said gardaí had “assisted the International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS) and contractors to enter a site for the purposes of lawful employment” in Kilsallaghan, where Thornton Hall is located.

The land was acquired for the Irish Prison Service almost 20 years ago. It was intended to build a new prison there but more recently the Department of Integration decided to use it to accommodate international protection applicants. The first are not expected to be moved in until next month.