Several houses were searched by Gardaí in a northside Cork estate on Friday morning in the wake of a number of violent incidents related to a local feud, reports by CorkBeo.
The estate in Ballyvolane saw a large garda presence in the area before a search of houses was carried out. The searches are believed to be linked to a string of violent incidents in the city.
Gardaí started the searches at 10am and were seen leaving the estate at around 11am.
Earlier this week, a car was smashed up at a roundabout in Togher while another car containing a mother and baby was rammed and shot at in Ballyvolane.
Additionally, Gardaí were forced to call in the Army bomb squad on Wednesday to inspect a stolen vehicle in Blackpool which failed to stop at a checkpoint in the city, such is the violent nature of the feud.
Local independent Councillor Ken O'Flynn - who has repeatedly offered to act as an 'honest broker' in an effort to de-escalate tensions between rival groups - says recent incidents have left locals with serious safety concerns.
Cllr O'Flynn told CorkBeo: "I'm getting calls from all members of the community. It's deeply upsetting for many that there were children in a playschool where a few houses down, Gardaí were breaking down doors.
"I've been getting calls from concerned families parents who were unable to get into the creche to collect their kids.
"There's huge worry in the area. People are now afraid to leave their kids out on the street in case something happens.
"There's a serious amount of worry that someone's going to get hurt, and it's probably going to be an innocent."
Cllr. O'Flynn added: "Gardaí are doing a bang-up job considering the resources they have. We need the Garda Commissioner to pay attention to what's going on in Cork."
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