Gardai probe bomb found at Russian-owned refinery in Limerick
The device was found on Friday afternoon, attached to a fuel tank that services the
Aughinish Alumina
refinery sports and social club building located close to the Shannon-estuary towns of Foynes and Askeaton.
A spokesman for the Irish Defence Forces confirmed the bomb was viable, meaning it was capable of detonating and causing injuries or death.
The device is believed to have included a battery-timed mechanism so that it could be detonated long after the perpetrators had left the area.
READ MORE
It is understood that up to 100 staff at the Rusal-owned facility were unable to leave while a 350-metre security cordon was in place at the scene for several hours between Friday night and Saturday morning.
A garda spokeswoman said local gardaí were alerted after a 'suspect device' was discovered 'at a premises near Foynes, at approximately 3.30pm, Friday, and a cordon was established'.
A statement provided by the Defence Forces said: 'On Friday evening, bomb experts from the Defence Forces Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team responded to a request for assistance from An Garda Síochána in relation to a suspect device in the area of Askeaton, Co. Limerick.
'Following an assessment, the EOD team confirmed the device was viable, and it was rendered safe. The EOD Team then handed the scene over to AGS.'
The army EOD unit was on scene for a total of six hours, from its arrival at 6.58pm on Friday to just after 1am on Saturday.
Security sources said CCTV will play a central role in the ongoing investigation into who was behind the bomb threat.
The area around and inside the alumina refinery is heavily populated with security cameras, and gardaí hope to secure footage that may assist them in tracking and apprehending those behind the bomb.
A garda spokeswoman confirmed on Sunday that the scene had been declared safe.
The area where the bomb was found was located close to a publicly accessible nature walking trail.
Following an assessment, the EOD team confirmed the device was viable, and it was rendered safe
A source said investigating gardaí were examining one of many lines of inquiry, including the possibility that the bomb may have been in response to Russian missile attacks in Kyiv on Thursday night.
While the Aughinish Alumina plant has no direct link to Russia's military invasion of Ukraine, it is owned by Russian aluminium giant Rusal, and one of its significant shareholders is Russian oligarch
Oleg Deripaska
.
Mr Deripaska was previously hit with UK government sanctions including a full asset freeze and travel ban in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. However, the Irish government has refused to support any potential sanctioning of Rusal's Askeaton plant.
The Kremlin stated in April 2024 that UK and US sanctions imposed on Russian metals would have no impact on its ability to supply aluminium to world markets, and would only serve to hurt countries imposing sanctions.
In February 2022, gardaí launched an investigation into criminal damage at the entrance to Aughinish Alumina which was daubed with slogans in red paint, similar in nature to protests at Russian embassies around the world.
Aughinish Alumina, which employs 450 people at the Askeaton refinery, has been contacted for comment.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
Puppy rescued by Limerick Animal Welfare after being ‘kicked around like a football' by youths
Calls are being made by irate members of the public for stricter animal welfare laws Members of the public were left deeply sickened as Limerick Animal Welfare (LAW) shared the story of a tiny puppy that was rescued from youths 'kicking him around like a football.' Milo was only a few weeks old and suffering with a severe worm infestation, when he was rescued by the Limerick-based charity and his welfare has sparked strong outrage among members of the public – many of whom took to social media to express their anger. Related topics Jasmin Griffin
Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
Oberstown staff member ‘punched in face in unprovoked attack' by young person, union says
A member of staff at Oberstown Children Detention Campus was hospitalised at the weekend following an assault by a young person, according to the Forsa trade union. The alleged incident on Sunday afternoon occurred in the exercise yard of one of the campus's units. The staff member was 'punched in the face several times in an unprovoked attack' and 'had to be taken to hospital where he was X-rayed for a suspected facial fracture', said a union source. The staff source said there were insufficient staffing levels in the yard at the time of Sunday's incident. READ MORE 'This young person has been involved in previous violent incidents on the campus ... They come from a very troubled, traumatic background and to be honest should have had far more intensive interventions far earlier in their life. 'They are probably in the wrong placement now.' The alleged assault comes less than a month after nine staff were injured in an incident involving a young person . That incident, during which improvised weapons were used, resulted in four staff being brought to hospital and a number being signed off work for up to a month, said Forsa. The union source, who works at Oberstown, queried assertions by Minister for Children Norma Foley , whose department oversees the campus, in a written answer to Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon last week, where she said the facility was 'not experiencing 'dangerously low staffing levels''. A staff survey conducted by Forsa in the last three months, seen by The Irish Times, found 69 per cent of staff members felt morale was 'low' or 'very low', while 54 per cent said morale had worsened in the previous 12 months. The survey, completed by 120 out of about 175 staff, found 80 per cent felt their workload had increased in the previous 12 months, with 74 per cent saying stress levels had worsened. A separate workplace culture report, commissioned by the Oberstown board of management and published on Friday, found just half of staff felt 'valued as an employee', while 'decision making in the interests of the young people could be improved'. The report, by accountancy firm Forvis Mazars, said 'substantial progress is still required' if the campus is to achieve its 'agreed target culture'. Oberstown's principal objective is 'to provide appropriate care, education, training and other programmes to young people between 12 and 18 years with a view to reintegrating them successfully back into their communities and society', the report noted. However, the centre's 'mission statement lacks clarity regarding the organisation's mandate in returning young people successfully to society' it said. 'While 76 per cent of survey respondents agreed Oberstown is a campus they enjoy working in, just half of staff agreed that they felt valued as an employee,' said the report. 'Cross-campus decision making in the interests of the young people could be improved as observed through focus group discussions. 'In the survey, just 47 per cent of respondents agreed that collaboration was actively encouraged.' On the issue of people development, the report found: 'There is no performance management system in Oberstown, as observed through focus group discussion, documentation review, and the survey where 71 per cent of staff agreed they had never been involved in a performance management process.' Authors found staff felt induction and onboarding systems could be strengthened 'to fully prepare them for their roles'. Just half of respondents agreed they were provided with the necessary information when they joined Oberstown. 'Only 25 per cent of survey respondents believed good performance is recognised at Oberstown and focus group discussions indicated there would be appreciation among staff for more acknowledgment of a 'job well done'.' A Department of Children spokesman said: 'The Department offers its full support to any member of staff who has been injured during the course of their work. As with all circumstances of this nature, these matters will be the subject of internal review. The Department does not comment on operational matters relating to Oberstown Children Detention Campus.' A spokesman for Oberstown said he could not comment on an individual incident, but that the campus 'offers its full support to any member of staff who has been injured during the course of their work'. He said management acknowledged the findings of the culture review, took the findings 'seriously' and were 'committed to acting on them'.
Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
Adjudicators cut almost €15m in legal costs from €35m claimed in 179 cases
Almost €15 million was deducted by adjudicators from a total of €35 million in legal costs claimed in 179 cases which were decided last year. The cases included 24 medical negligence cases, in which costs claims amounted to a total €17.2 million and total deductions of €7.36 million were made. The figures were set out in the annual report for 2024, published on Monday, of the Office of the Legal Costs Adjudicators. In three planning matters, total costs of €2.58 million were claimed and almost €1.3 million was deducted. In a single professional negligence case, a claim for €387,792 costs was cut to €241,714, a reduction of €146,078. READ MORE More than €518,000 was cut from a total €1.82 million claimed for costs related to 27 road traffic incident cases. In 15 employers/occupiers liability cases, a total €1.86 million in costs was claimed but €778,588 was cut from that amount. About €157,000 was shaved off the €574,087 total costs claimed for seven family law cases, while a claim for €140,368 in a constitutional law case was cut to €90,442. The adjudicators determine legal costs disputes, mostly between parties to litigation and mostly concerning litigation in the superior courts – the High Court , Court of Appeal and Supreme Court . Costs disputes between a lawyer and their client also fall within the remit of the office but it does not deal with claims of excessive costs or inadequate legal services. Circuit Court costs are dealt with by county registrars and District Court costs are dealt with by the District Court judge involved. The report said 912 cases, claiming a total €145.3 million costs, were filed last year for adjudication, a slight reduction on the 1,015 received in 2023. Of the 912, the highest number, 181, related to road traffic incidents; 152 related to employers and occupiers' liability; 136 to medical negligence and 88 to judicial review. Part of the office's remit is to facilitate resolution of legal costs disputes and 1,019 cases involving total costs claims of about €176 million were settled, some formally, some informally, before any adjudication. The settled cases included 92 judicial reviews involving total costs claims of about €27.1 million; 160 employers/occupiers liability cases involving total costs claims of €22.4 million; 164 medical negligence cases involving total costs claims of €57 million; and 195 road traffic cases involving total costs claims of about €15 million. [ More than 140 complaints against lawyers upheld by regulator Opens in new window ] Of 179 applications which went to adjudication and were decided in 2024, involving total costs claims of €35.25 million, the adjudicators permitted costs of €20.48 million, meaning a deduction of about €14.7 million. One conveyancing case involved a claim for costs of almost €44,000 and a case involving a pension claim sought costs of €182,103. By the end of last year, the office had 394 cases at hand involving claims amounting to a total €75.8 million. Those include a claim for just over €1 million total costs related to two defamation cases. Cases at hand are those which were previously lodged with the office but remain uncompleted for reasons including the parties having sought an adjournment, the matter awaiting a hearing, decision or a reconsideration of a decision. The report said the average time from an adjudication application being lodged to the first hearing date was seven weeks in 2024, similar to the three previous years. Chief legal costs adjudicator Barry Magee, who was appointed to the position last October, said that effectively means no delays between lodging an application and a case coming up for hearing.
