MORE THAN 440 waste management staff at Dublin City Council were on hand over the St Patrick’s weekend and right up to 6am this morning to keep the city clean during the busy period.

The Council did so in order to clean the city centre streets to the top Grade A standard before they re-opened to traffic after yesterday’s parade.

Over the St Patrick’s weekend, more than 500,000 extra visitors came to Dublin city centre.

In response to this, from Friday night at 10pm right up until 6am this morning, Dublin City Council had 442 waste management staff working in the city centre on rotating shifts to ensure there was no gap in service.

A spotless clean Temple Bar after the St Patrick's festivities

St Patrick’s Day fell on a Monday this year and therefore made for the busiest weekend of the year for the Waste Management department.

Numerous extra shifts were in operation to ensure a first-class street cleaning service was provided on a 24-hour basis. 

Dublin City Council say that core tasks over the weekend included continuously emptying some 684 litter bins, as well as manually and mechanically sweeping footpaths and road channels.

Litter Wardens were also on patrol.

Yesterday, the city centre was divided into four zones, with each team focusing on their specific section with a view to cleaning streets to the top Grade A standard before they re-opened to traffic after the parade.

Some 140 barrels were placed in key locations to provide additional capacity for litter where large crowds were gathered and between 30 and 40 tonnes of litter was collected in the city centre.

Performers and spectators take part in the St Patrick's Day Parade in Dublin. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

Waste Management also had crews on duty to service the areas outside the city centre, focusing on main roads, places of high footfall and locations where events where taking place. 

A spokesperson for Dublin City Council noted that St Patrick’s Festival is a marquee event for the city and thanked the “hard working Waste Management staff after their busiest weekend of the year”.

The spokesperson also noted that preparations for the busy St Patrick’s Festival began at the start of the year, with An Garda Siochana, the HSE, Dublin Fire Brigade, Dublin Bus and Irish Rail among the key stakeholders involved.