Local residents are resisting the use of steel spikes by British soldiers to make border roads impassable.
A stretch of road at Courtbane on the Armagh Louth border has been sealed off by the British Army a number of times. People on both sides of the border are concerned about restrictions on travel caused by the use of steel spikes to block the roads. When the road is closed, detours are put in place, making journeys across the border far longer and more inconvenient.
British troops argue that they are simply obeying orders. The decision to spike roads came after a booby trap explosion in Crossmaglen killed two RUC men in August. People living along the border believe the measures are unnecessary. Local MP and one of the founders of the newly formed Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), Mr Paddy O'Hanlon, has collected 300 signatures calling for an end to the spiking of roads.
Local people outline the problems the use of the spikes on the road pose for them. They raise concerns over the detours required when travelling for work across the border. One man describes the inconvenience of the spikes and how they have cut the parish in two. People are determined to remove the spikes each time they are put in place by the British Army.
If they put them up in the morning, we'll have them down at night.
A fund has been established locally to cover the costs of removing the spikes.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 10 October 1970. The reporter is Donal Kelly.
