Gardaí restore access to Whitegate refinery after pushing back protesters

Access to the Whitegate Oil Refinery in East Cork has been restored, with several tankers escorted into the facility by Gardaí on motorcycles.

It follows a significant escalation of the Garda operation at Whitegate this morning, which saw the public order unit push protesters back in an effort to restore access to the refinery.

The events follow Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly declaring a “national exceptional event” over the fuel protests.

It has been reported that members of the Garda public order unit deployed pepper spray against protesters at Whitegate during the operation.

Before Gardaí advanced, a Garda inspector spoke through a loudhailer, telling protesters that if they did not leave the area and heed instructions from Gardaí, they would be arrested.

Around 100 Gardaí pushed protesters back about 100 feet, establishing a new line of barriers, while some protesters were pulled from the crowd and removed to a different area behind the barricades.

A number of additional Garda vans arrived at the scene in the past hour, bringing further personnel to Whitegate.

Earlier today, units of the Defence Forces arrived at Whitegate, bringing with them a medium-duty tilt recovery vehicle, which is used to transport heavy vehicles.

That vehicle has yet to be used, and two tractors were removed from the blockade by Gardaí after the keys were handed over by their owners.

The Garda operation came as about 600 of the 1,500 filling stations across the State have run dry, according to Fuels for Ireland chief executive Kevin McPartlan.

He told RTÉ Radio earlier that he expected the number “will grow quite dramatically” if ongoing blockades of fuel depots remain in place.

“If everything remains as it is, that is to say that the three facilities remain blockaded, then I don’t think we could guarantee fuel at any forecourt by very early next week, Monday morning or Monday perhaps,” he said.

The arrival of tankers into Whitegate was greeted with jeers from protesters standing behind the barricades, but the mood is understood to have calmed somewhat since then.

A large Garda presence remains at the scene.