How to get a police escort; meet a cool Irish Cop(Garda)!

It's a bummer and not often when a fairly new car just stops and refuses to start. Most of the time you can limp it to a safe place, but it wasn't the case here. And worse when the break down is at a very busy intersection where traffic already hits a bottle-neck... and this was RIGHT before rush hour in Dublin!
Rather than waiting for a tow truck, causing a bigger tail back and hearing even more abuse from randomers stuck behind the car, we got the car out of the intersection and to a side street ready for tow truck.
Thank you to a very helpful Garda who lent and hand.. and lights!

[@frankmartin9023]

Thanks for posting. It's refreshing that someone uses social media to post something positive about our public servants. Abuse is unfortunately the norm. Well done.

[@bustersgarage]

Thank you. :) I think the genuinely positive and helpful acts deserve attention. We all could use the extra positivity after this year! :P And the officer certainly wasn't required to help as I had things under control, but OMG it made it so much safer and was keeping people in the area attentive. Because I've done a few rescues and not everyone is paying attention. So he was keeping everyone safer and I highly appreciated that! and I'm sure the person being towed with their 2yo in the car wasn't happy being stuck in the road, so really, the Guarda improved the day for all of us.

[@jasbarsoph]

I usually find that people posting negative videos on the guards have a different agenda. We are so lucky to have a force of good people looking after us.

[@bustersgarage]

@@jasbarsoph Most guards I've spoken to are genuinely pleasant. Context is everything though, as it's often only over a burnt out bulb, road check, signature/ID verification or for directions in town. I did have one that must have been having a very bad day; he was livid over a minor issue with a disc in my windscreen, but after I politely explained and offered to bring proof of documentation to a garda station, he mellowed. I was let off with a warning and he said, "Have a nice day." afterward. I think sometimes people just need a break/de-escalation moment.

[@jasbarsoph]

@@bustersgarage we are all human everyone can have a bad day,I think if your polite with people they will be polite with you, The guards have a very stressful job and it really does take a special person to put their own safety ahead of others on a day by day basis.

[@NWIE76]

Hats off to that Garda, I Salute Him.

[@bustersgarage]

So many people have negative experiences and I would as well, but when we think about it, the positive often outnumber the negative, but the positive rarely get reported and they should just the same. Because the good guys deserve respect and kudos :)

[@NWIE76]

@@bustersgarage Well said Buster's ♥ Simply the truth. Respect...

[@eddieokeefe9708]

Thats the side of our garda nobody ever sees

[@bustersgarage]

Not so many people film the happy or helpful stuff nowadays huh. It only occurred to me to post it after some people at work mentioned that it was a cool video.

[@CobraEmergency]

Respect to that Garda!

[@bustersgarage]

I love the positivity this video creates! I'm glad I uploaded it! I was just interest in how a Police/Garda escort would work and thought, "that'd be neat to share." Glad I did.

[@CobraEmergency]

@@bustersgarage Absolutely! This kind of positivity goes a long way to making everyone's day a bit better, but especially our public servants and those who go out of their way to protect us. Thanks for sharing!

[@stephenoneill2844]

We need more of this, and less of unwarranted surveillance and stalking and harassment of innocent targets of the Irish State!

[@bustersgarage]

100% why I wanted to post this. There's many people out there seeking the negative stuff and posting it because it gets the clicks and debate going, but the positive activity deserves recognition, because that's what I feel needs to be appreciated and promoted. We should correct what isn't right, but acknowledge and encourage what is going well.

[@darrell190967]

Are Ireland's Police all armed now, or did this one just happened to be an armed unit, like our ARU's or SO19 here in the UK

[@bustersgarage]

It just happened to be an armed unit. I dont believe many Garda are armed by default.

[@120mmsmoothbore2]

The ARU are about 4% of Ireland's total police force and are moved around to areas when necessary, be it gang feuds or raids happening. They're typically dickheads tho, stuck-up slobs.

[@adamosullivan5839]

@@120mmsmoothbore2 Nice generalisation there lad

[@CaseysRepository]

About 3000 are armed out of 15,000

[@bustersgarage]

@@120mmsmoothbore2 Definitely want to encourage guys like this then. So extra kudos to a pleasant ARU officer!

[@diabloflare8304]

Great discipline that’s how it works and respect!!! :)

[@bustersgarage]

A good old fashioned dose of helpfulness :)

[@antseanbheanbocht4993]

Junction of Copeland Avenue Griffith Avenue and Malahide Road Dublin. Close to auld Berties gaff.

[@bustersgarage]

Yup! Funny how Ireland's leaders have normal houses in normal neighbourhoods.. No gates, big wall or fences, not many houses over 100sqm and no Ferraris in the drives. Well, it's nowhere in Dublin is cheap, but there's certainly much more expensive houses.

[@Eireann.]

Good to see the other side rather than the negative

[@bustersgarage]

Positive scenarios don't get near the attention they should. In todays media, it's the dirty laundry that gets the views. It was only afterward, I thought, "hey, I should upload this, because this officer didn't have to help and he did. I really respect that guy! I am glad to live where I do and really appreciate that almost every encounter with officials is this pleasant. I've had a grouch one or two. haha, but only because they assumed things until they met me. Once they saw my car was fully insured, taxed and legal, they were friendly and wished me safe travels. I found out later I might have bought my first car in Ireland from someone on the wrong side of the law. I have not been pulled over since I sold that car. I was pulled over at least monthly! LOL

[@michaelmoran2059]

Pure sound 👍

[@someplanes4321]

Could you not stop at the left hand side after the u turn ? Onto those road markings. Road seems wide enough. Just wondering

[@bustersgarage]

@2:00 - Sometimes people do park on the left there, but it's not really allowed between 9am and 5pm or so. After business hours, it's no problem, in fact, the bus lane turns to parking up a bit further than that, but @2:30 - This is bus parking, so we went a bit further until we got to off-street parking for safety sake and ease of loading on a roll back.

[@bustersgarage]

Oh and those hashed lines bordered with a solid white line mark out an area you're not allowed to drive/park in unless a sort of "last resort." That's for pulling into, if an emergency vehicle needs through OR if you're having an emergency. Plus that section heading into town was about to get really busy (though during the pandemic/lockdowns significantly less) it is a major artery into Dublin. The side road to the left would have been very narrow and winding for the recovery vehicle trying to load a car and/or turn around. (it's residential). The bigger road at the light after the second right hand turn is wide and easier access, no matter where the recover truck would come from.

[@briankelly5816]

Well done to that garda!!

[@bustersgarage]

I agree! He didn't have to assist, but it was a welcome one!

[@Roger_Stenning]

Idly curious, what was the make/model, and the fault? Also, good job by the Guardai :)

[@bustersgarage]

A well-looked after mid-2000s Mercedes E Class. The driver reported the car suddenly began running sluggish and then stopped completely when at idle. And tried to restart, but it refused to fire up. When the key was turned, the pump wouldn't prime, so I suspected either the pump had a fault and tripped a fuse or the sending unit power failed. After a failed fuel pressure test and bench test of the pump, the repairer stated they replaced the sending unit and the fault didn't return.

[@Roger_Stenning]

@@bustersgarage Thanks :)

[@agentm13]

@@bustersgarage that’s clearly a 2018 bmw

[@Eagleyegaming]

where is that i thought it was uk as they driving on left

[@ryanbarnes631]

Ireland

[@bustersgarage]

@@ryanbarnes631 Correct!

[@bustersgarage]

Most of the EU would drive on the right, but the places that drive on the left: Ireland, UK (Wales, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland) and also Isle of Man, Jersey, Cyprus and Malta. Prior though, a good few countries drove on the left. from Canada in the early 1900s to much more recently... Sweden switched over.

[@simon8089]

@@bustersgarage and Japan and Oz😄✌🏼great video btw.

[@looneyirish007]

Junction of Griffith Avenue, Malahide Road, Dublin, 78 countries drive on the left.

[@ingodwetrustdellaware-inc8322]

One of a kind..

[@bustersgarage]

Hopefully not though. I think that we should encourage and ask for more chill and helpful officials all-round. :)

[@riceire2445]

That's an armed Garda

[@bustersgarage]

hehe, yeah, I never paid much attention to Garda/Carabinieri/Police firearms. Someone informed me that it is rare that anyone outside the Army or Armed Support units will have firearms and will almost always have indicators stating so.

[@120mmsmoothbore2]

@@bustersgarage The red line on the side of the Gardai keep indicates it's an Armed Response Unit, just in case you didn't know.

[@pauljones914]

Cool Cops

[@bustersgarage]

Absolutely Agree! And when they're cool, it's a great side to see! Not terribly exciting most times though haha, like if you're on a space shuttle or flight somewhere, no one wants an exciting plane trip really, when you think about it.

[@Lar308]

I agree (as a former Garda) ERU / ASU even traffic and detective gardai think there are some sort of elite and look down on the everyday Garda and even everyday sergeants. I suppose that's the case with most police forces but it used to annoy me when I was in the gardai. Retired in 2013 as a sergeant.

[@bustersgarage]

I was in the Navy and theres the same "levels of eliteness." I think its important for everyone to remember we are on the same team and work together and yeah, some jobs are going to be seemingly more exciting/glorified. Thank you for your service!

[@Roberto-el3wu]

Damn I am surprised the armed support unit would stop for that but its cool

[@bustersgarage]

Definitely! I was happy he was happy to help. hehe I think he appreciated I was trying to prevent a massive tailback and it's always safer with traffic control. Doesn't matter how safe you're being while towing, not everyone pays attention and things can happen.

[@Roberto-el3wu]

@@bustersgarage yeah I want to be a garda and be a nice one like this guy but how is tow trucking can it get hard at times and do you meet nice clients or even work with the gardaí

[@shinyenderman9999]

Respect to the garda (is garda like police or like armed responce)

[@bustersgarage]

Garda is the polite general term in Ireland for a policeman/policewoman, sometimes plural. I'm sure there's an Irish term for "Armed Garda" but I dont know much Irish. :P There is a correct modification for the plural- "Gardaí" pronounced Gardee if I remember correctly.

[@SkorpzOfficial]

The Garda/Gardaí are the main police force in Ireland. They have specialised units that specifically use firearms. But most if not all IRV officers are equipped with a sidearm (glock 19)

[@ciaranmac646]

An tAonad Tacaíochta Faoi Airm

[@bluelineairsoftesc4975]

@@SkorpzOfficial Irish garda are not armed. They have specialist units that are like Asu,eru and the detectives are armed but not all response officers are armed. You are confused with the PSNI which is Northern Ireland not Southern Ireland as seen here

[@Ken00753]

@@bluelineairsoftesc4975 Deffo

[@BS15RED]

Stop at the Garda Shop!

[@bustersgarage]

LOL

[@DavidMcCoyII]

Why couldn't you just pull a U-turn right there rather than going all the way down to the next break?

[@bustersgarage]

That immediate RH U Turn would have been pretty tight for non-working power steering. (only a single lane on the starting road, but the cross road was a full double lane each way with cycle paths.) Also a matter of stopping just one traffic flow at a time. We did consider it, but the officer thought doing a uturn going up hill while already moving, plus on a wider strip was less risky as the person being towed had no prior experience being towed.

[@quinnmapley9010]

HELP ME I AM CONFUSED WHAT HAPPEND

[@bustersgarage]

A car broke down in the intersection and a tailback started pretty quickly. So I was helping get the car out. (I always have a tow strap in my Jeep). So right as I started getting ready to tow, a guard showed up and offered an escort to keep things safer. I was able to easily get the car off the main road and into a side street, so a tow truck could pick it up. It was just bad luck how the car broke down. With nearly a year in lockdown at that point, I assume it hadn't been driven much and the fuel sender decided to quit working. Though, not surprised he was pleasant, I was just pleasantly surprised the Guarda was so helpful and saved a lot of negotiation with traffic by giving us an escort through an illegal u-turn and what is a very short filter light.

[@irishterminator.]

I couldn't figure out why you were driving so slowly but of course it now makes perfect sense so well done for being a good Knight of the road 👏 👍👍

[@michael-r9d8b]

There not so cool when they are sqrewing you over and telling lies about you? This is probably another of duty cop?

[@bustersgarage]

I think that goes for anyone. If they're misrepresenting/mistreating you, whether they're a stranger, public official or public servant and even friends and family... No those kinds are not so cool. I realise everyone's experiences will vary, but credit where credit is due. There is plenty of those who just do a good job and grind away each day... And it is very often a thankless job. Those who go above and beyond deserve accolades! I personally know a man who is a retired officer. The whole time I've known him, I only knew he was an officer but not WHAT he did. One day I was told it was his primary job to investigate crimes where the abuse, injury and/or death of a child was involved. And he's the kindest of souls you could ever meet. I can not fathom the nightmare fuel he witnessed and has to live with and still has kept who he is! He has taken down terrible people, literally saved additional kids from death or lives of unimaginable trauma. Being a father myself, I had a whole new level of appreciation for a group of officers I didn't even know existed! And wish they didn't have to!

[@veloc123]

Ask him for antifas phone number...?

[@bustersgarage]

LOL, I doubt he'd know an antifa, but an Auntie-Fanny; he may have.