Staff and contractors working for Irish Water were punched in the face, had a member of the public come into their office and confront them and had a car window smashed by thieves.
A log of incidents involving employees working on water services around the country reveals how in one sinister incident, a person gained entry to offices after sneakily “tailgating” into an underground car park.
They were then able to gain access to the second floor of the Irish Water office before being removed.
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After being escorted off the premises they again confronted a staff member outside the office.
In another case two years ago, a worker was “punched in the face” by thieves that had stolen a concrete saw from a site.
A log of the assault said: “Contractors were having lunch when they noted the men stealing the consaw and confronted them. The men tried to flee the scene in a car which rammed a local resident’s car. The thieves then escaped on foot. Gardai attended the site.”
Last year, while working, two Irish Water workers were approached by an individual who proceeded to smash their passenger side window.
A note of the incident said: “He remained in the area in an apparent attempt to intimidate the employees.”
Irish Water also logged an incident in Cork in 2020 when two staff members were subjected to what was described as “unacceptable behaviour”.
They were inspecting ground conditions at a septic tank when they were confronted by a neighbour who said they were trespassing.
“Staff member explained the purpose of the visit but adjacent landowner became angry, shouting and threatening the staff member,” the water utility said.
In another case that year, an employee was “verbally abused and threatened” by a member of the public.
Irish Water said there had been 12 incidents officially logged in the period since the start of 2020, or an average of around four per year. In the three years prior to that, there were another 21 incidents recorded, or around seven per year.
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