'Outlandish' - nappies and toys dumped at sacred Laois memorial for babies

A Laois local election candidate and community activist has highlighted what he says is a 'new low' in dumping after he discovered what he describes as 'outlandish behaviour' at a memorial for deceased babies near Abbeyleix.

Noel Burke drew attention to two recent incidents in his community. He was especially appalled by dumping on the outskirts of Abbeyleix at the Tonduff Cillín. It is a site where Mr Burke and other local people have maintained and erected a memorial as it is a historic burial for many unbaptized babies. 

"Illegal dumping has now taken on a new low. What a weekend of bizarre, outlandish behaviour I came across," he said.

He explained what he discovered on Wednesday, January 15. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Photo of the Tonduff dumping. Pic: James G Carroll

"I decided to travel over to the Tonduff Cillín site just to see if the snowdrops had made an appearance after the heavy fall of snow we've just had. Sure enough the snowdrops had made an appearance at Tonduff but that unfortunately wasn't the only thing I found. Somebody had decided during the night to take their unwanted children's toys and dump them on the sacred babies burial site at Tonduff, along with a big bag of dirty nappies also," he said. 

He said John Ging from the LCC Environmental Patrol Unit came along and cleaned up the "disgraceful mess".

Mr Burke who contested the local elections as an independent, also had remove a suite of furniture dumped at the side of the road in Raheenabrouge also in the Abbeylex area. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Photo of Raheenabrouge road dumping. Pic: James G Carroll

"On Saturday evening last I first came across someone's pathetic attempt to dump their entire sitting room suite over the ditch on the Raheenabrouge road, this is a road that joins the main Portlaoise and Abbeyleix, Ballyroan roads it's approximately two kilometres outside the town of Abbeyleix," he said on his facebook page.

Laois County Council operates a Civic Amenity / Recycling Centre at Kyletalesha Landfill between Portlaoise and Mountmellick on the N80.