A terrified group of tourists barricaded themselves inside a pub as they fled a gang of teenagers in a shocking attack in Dublin.
The tourists had just visited the Guinness Storehouse and were walking on Thomas Street in the capital when they were pelted with stones.
A group of youths wearing hoodies then began screaming racial expletives – including the N word – at the visitors, believed to be from France and South America.
One of the French tourists managed to take a hammer from one of the attackers. He received several blows to the face with the weapon as he tried to disarm the hooded teen.
They managed to get into Arthur’s pub on the corner of Thomas Street where they barricaded themselves in, dodging the stones being thrown at them.
Once the tourists got inside the pub, the gang attempted to kick the door in.
Seán McKiernan, landlord of Arthur’s, said the terrifying incident began at around 7.30pm on Saturday.
He said: ‘One of the staff came in and said “it looks like it’s kicking off out there, it looks like someone has a hammer”.
‘Then we heard a loud bang. It was a rock hitting off our window. We saw a group of French guys running, they were throwing rocks at them. Then they bundled themselves inside.
‘There was a gang of 15 or so all hooded up chasing them with hammers. There were several groups of tourists there, French as well as South Americans I think.
‘At this point one of the French guys takes out this hammer, it was like a sheet metal hammer, one of those big rounded types of hammers. He had gotten it off one of them and had taken a few whacks of it as well. His chin was all swollen. One of the tourists in a separate group was hit in the side of the head with a rock.’
All the tourists had just been to the Guinness Storehouse, Ireland’s most popular tourist attraction with around 1.5million overseas visitors a year. Mr McKiernan added:
‘They were all coming from there. They were all a bit shook up, these were all big lads as well, they were fairly well built and the shortest one would have been about six foot. They were all terrified.
‘We got them into the pub, got them somewhere to sit down, water and ice for their injuries. They were saying “this is crazy. Does this happen a lot?” And we told them it didn’t as we didn’t want to scare them any more.
‘But there’s always problems around places like Temple Bar, for example. You’ve had serious attacks just across the road on Bridgefoot Street and Vicar Street. It’s becoming a common thing.’
Despite having CCTV evidence as well as the weapon used by one of the assailants, Mr McKiernan said gardaí told him there little action they could take as the perpetrators were so young.
He added: ‘Yesterday when the gardaí were taking the footage of them trying to kick the door in, they were saying “they’re underage nothing’s really going to happen – if they are charged there’s no penalties”. ‘They said there’ll be no consequences for them. They could knock in to the parents but the parents have much the same attitude.’
Mr McKiernan described how tourists are getting ‘swept up’ into the violence on Dublin’s streets and said the declining numbers of visitors here could be down to them feeling unsafe.
Gardaí last night confirmed they are investigating the incident. Visitor numbers have still not recovered to pre-pandemic levels.
Figure released earlier this year recorded that 18.1million visitors went to an Irish visitor experience or attraction last year, significantly more than in 2022 but still well below the 22.9million visitors reported in 2019.
Mr McKiernan said it is now common for tourists to ask him or his staff if they are safe to walk around at night.
He added: ‘They’d have read about attacks on tourists and that sort of thing. You want to say you’re grand but it’s not necessarily the case.’
Regarding how often he sees gardaí in the area, he added: ‘You’d see them the odd time – I know there was a pledge to increase Garda numbers but you can’t pluck them out of thin air.
‘I have a late-night cafe where we often serve gardaí and they’re frustrated as well. They put in the work but nothing happens.’
The safety of Dublin’s streets was put in the spotlight following the attack on US tourist Stephen Termini on Talbot Street last summer. The conversation about safety resulted in Justice Minister Helen McEntee pledging an additional €10million to bolster high visibility policing in Dublin city.
Despite the additional money, vicious attacks on tourists are continuing. In June, a young Welsh tourist was left with life-changing injuries after being slashed in the face in Dublin city centre.
The 19-year-old victim was attacked while staying in a hostel in Smithfield with a friend last weekend. Later that month, a Canadian tourist died in hospital after being attacked in the early hours just off O’Connell Street.
Despite the attacks, Cabinet members have repeatedly said that Dublin is safe.
Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe said recently that Dublin city centre is not ‘dying’ and is a safe place.
It comes amid concerns about crime, drug use and the viability of the hospitality sector in the heart of the capital. Mr Donohoe said the Government wanted to make the capital a ‘great city to live, visit and go out in’.
He added: ‘We’re not where we want to be with regard to that, but I think we will get there.
‘When I’m spending time in the city centre – a city centre that I live reasonably near – I see the challenges that are there but I see a vibrancy and I see movement and vitality in our city.
A spokeswoman said: ‘Gardaí are investigating reports of assault. Investigations are ongoing at this time.’
Social Democrats TD for Dublin Central, Gary Gannon, said it is ‘terrifying’ to think that a group of young people could have that level of violence in them.
He also called for more high visibility patrols of the city.
‘If it is someone that young out there, then we need to get to the root. Where exactly has this child been failed so badly? What sort of 15-year-old takes a hammer to someone? I’m scared of the conditions that created that teen.’
