Tralee’s main parish church has been severely damaged after a man drove an ice cream van through the gates of the church.
The vehicle, which was travelling at speed, was driven through the locked gates of St John’s Church and proceeded through the double entrance of the building.
A local man in his 50s has been arrested and is being assessed at University Hospital Kerry, where he is still under Garda supervision.
The incident at Castle Street in Tralee’s town centre took place at 9pm on Thursday night and gardaí were quickly on the scene.
Considerable damage has been done to the main church doors, but Masses are going ahead as normal, with a side entrance open.
Nobody was injured in the incident.
A priest at St John’s parish has spoken of the shock felt by the Diocese of Kerry, but is glad nobody has been hurt.
“Damage is limited to the entrance of the church, and we are confident this will be restored to normal as soon as possible. Our prayers and thoughts are with anyone affected by this incident,” Fr Francis Nolan said.
St John’s Church dates back to the mid-19th century.