Every day, healthcare professionals across Cork work long shifts in our hospitals to ensure patients are properly cared for.
For many, all they’re looking for is a bit of well-deserved R&R after their workday wraps up. However, in recent weeks, these workers say they’ve been left ‘disgusted’ after returning to their cars only to find their tyres slashed by vandals.
One nurse who works in the CUH told CorkBeo that she returned to her vehicle after a long overnight shift on Tuesday to find all four of her tyres had been damaged beyond repair. Not only did this leave her without transport in the short term, but getting the car moved and new tyres fitted came at a significant cost.
She said: “I was disgusted, I had just finished an overnight shift when I came back to my car and found all four of my tyres slashed. It’s an expense I’m really struggling to pay, and I’m worried it’s going to happen again.”
While tyre prices vary by vehicle make and model, getting all four replaced will easily cost a few hundred euros. In the current cost-of-living crisis, an unexpected expense like this can really stretch household budgets, particularly when there’s no guarantee it won’t happen again.
Gardaí confirmed to CorkBeo that they had received a report of criminal damage in the Wilton area overnight on the 29th-30th of April. However, according to workers and residents, this isn’t an isolated incident.
As parking is limited at the CUH, many workers instead opt to park in quiet residential areas around Wilton and walk over after their shifts. It’s in these areas that the tyre slashings have occurred.
Both healthcare workers and local residents have had their tyres destroyed in what seems to be a series of senseless acts of vandalism. The cumulative damage no doubt runs into the thousands, and should it continue, many healthcare workers may have to switch to longer public transport commutes to avoid constantly replacing their tyres.