The seaside resort of Lahinch has been described as a "battlefield" on Saturday nights by a senior garda because of the numbers of young people drunk and fighting.
Supt Seán Corcoran was speaking on the worsening public-order situation in the Co Clare town, which prompted a district court judge to refuse late-night exemptions to two nightclubs.
However, the exemptions were granted on appeal at a special sitting of Ennis Circuit Court in the face of Garda and local objections.
The chairman of Lahinch Community Council, Mr Donogh O'Loughlin, said yesterday that the community was determined to rid Lahinch of the lager-lout element which has afflicted the area in recent years.
"For too long, the community has been too tolerant of the level of drunkenness of youths on Lahinch's Main Street.
"That must now change and the disco operators have one month to address the situation or the community council and other residents will object to the next round of exemption applications."
Lahinch has a winter population of 450 which goes up to 5,000 during peak summer weekends.
Supt Corcoran said young people were being bused into Lahinch from outlying areas at the weekends and were going into the nightclubs drunk and coming out more drunk.
He said it was hard to bring order to a battlefield after the nightclubs closed. "With 800 drunk people, it is very difficult to enforce the law."
Garda reinforcements patrolled Lahinch last bank holiday weekend; the weekend passed without incident.
