Lifebelt vandals could have put lives in danger

What was probably unthinking mischief last night could have left the river in Kilcullen without its lifebelt on the bank below the market square, writes Brian Byrne.

Two young teenagers threw the lifebelt into the river at around 8.30pm, and only for the combined efforts of Garda Steve Kinneavy and the Canoe Club, the device would have been lost.

"This kind of thing could ultimately mean that when somebody's life needs saving, the lifebelt might not be available," Garda Kinneavy told the Diary. "I'd just like anybody tempted to do something like this to think it through to what could be fatal consequences."

The two youths, who live locally, were apprehended, and members of the Canoe Club recovered the lifebelt further down the river. It is now back in place.