Vivienne Parry, who queued with her 10-year-old son, said the crowds were able to pour in from every direction, particularly from Wood Quay via Winetavern Street. She accused the organisers of “utterly shambolic crowd control” and said those who had queued patiently at Christ Church found themselves being displaced by those who came after them.
Ailbhe Nic Cába from Meath spent six hours queuing and made it past the security marquee where US Secret Service agents vetted and frisked the public. However, she and others were turned back by gardaí at another barrier because they believed they had not been vetted. She said the pushing got really bad when President Obama started to speak, and several people left the queue.
“It is a great pity that the Irish authorities must once again learn from their follies before getting things right. It seems that ‘No, we can’t’,” she said, inverting Mr Obama’s famed campaign motto.
The Obama Event ‘Shambolic’ (Ronan McGreevy, Irish Times)