Tuesday 20 September 2011

Stolen Irish level crossing gates cross the line

I remember when reading "Teems of Times and Happy Returns" by Dominic Behan - an original 1961 hardback version found in Greene's - the author recalled that anything not nailed fast in his  Rutland Street childhood stomping ground, was likely to be stolen.  It seems light-fingeredness is a national disease, whether the lowlives are clad in shellsuits or Armani.  Or maybe Louis Copeland, this being Ireland.  

Even in Britain, the scousers - many of whom have strong Irish connections - are the ones who get most stick on the subject of thieving.   Whether there is any truth in it or not, or if it is because parts of Liverpool are particularly poor, I do not know.

I meant to put this post up last week, but between one thing and another, I've been pretty much up to my eyes and never got around to it.   Blogging is a time-consuming business, and it is no wonder that so many long-running bloggers are packing it in these days.   So, in the excerpt from "Breaking News" below, read "Sunday last last" for "Sunday last".  Yeah, not-so-breaking news on Gombeen Nation.

Iarnród Éireann says that seven level-crossing gates were stolen in the early hours of Sunday last between Ballymote in Co Sligo and Boyle in Co Roscommon.

Two gates were stolen at Cloonloo and five at Culfadda, according to a company spokeswoman.

She said Iarnród Éireann moved fast to secure the train lines for the safety of livestock and the public.

Cabling had been stolen in the past but level-crossing gates, which can be up to 14-foot high, had never been taken before, the spokeswoman said.

Gardaí in Ballymote and Boyle are investigating.

Given the petty gain for one individual, against the very real safety implications for others, I suppose you could say a line has been crossed in selfish stupidity 


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5 comments:

john said...

Sure sign of recession when anyone sinks so low, probably stole them as they are made of metal I believe, I see that a lot of statues mostly made of bronze have been stolen around the country.

The Gombeen Man said...

That's right John. I heard a sculptor living in Meath or Louth had one of her works stolen from her garden... Any metal with any value at all isn't safe. Talk about brass neck.

albert hall said...

Not just Ireland that is facing this problem - the UK is having LIVE high tension cables high-tension cabling being stolen from the railway lines and stopping the trains. The poor train service used to be blamed on "leaves on the line." There has never been a report that the Irish are to blame, but the UK does have hundreds of people roaming the country who have been let out and done a runner on the promise of producing their documents having got into the country "illegally" in the first place.

Dakota said...

And there is those GM that ask why the property market collapsed in Ireland.

The Gombeen Man said...

It's a bizarre one, alright.