Limerick man recovering after being ‘mugged’ in Barcelona
A LIMERICK man was the victim of an assault and was hit over the head with a weapon on the streets of Barcelona whilst visiting his girlfriend who lives in the city.
Ryan O’Rourke from Abbeyfeale and a former reporter with the Limerick Leader was spending some time in the Spanish city when he was attacked by an assailant who was allegedly wielding a weapon.
Mr O’Rourke said two nights before the incident happened two men tried to mug him and tried to get away with his wallet.
It was approximately 11pm two nights later, when Mr O’Rourke was walking home.
“A girl was pointing over at a group of people and when I turned my head around I got a whack into the head,” Mr O’Rourke said.
He told the Limerick Leader he isn’t “entirely sure” if the assailant used a closed fist or a weapon at the time of the assault.
A few individuals got involved in the incident and the local police were called. “The police were very quick and the ambulance crew were amazing,” he said.
According to Mr O’Rourke, the hospital service was “remarkable”.
“I was brought in, seen, stitched, treated, and had two CT scans, blood tests were done and I was discharged all within six hours.”
Mr O’Rourke says he is lucky to be alive following the assault. “If the attack happened in Ireland I don’t think I’d be here right now given our current hospital service.
“I was telling the first responders how long it takes for an ambulance to arrive in Limerick and they said if it happened at home I’d likely be dead.
“We have a higher GDP than Spain, and the population of Barcelona is so much higher than Limerick yet I was seen by a doctor within such a short space of time following the incident. That’s unheard of in Ireland,” he added.
One of Mr O’Rourke’s final memories before blacking out following the incident was of a police officer holding the weapon which was used in the assault above him before he was taken to the hospital.
Following on from the incident, Mr O’Rourke says he still has “the worst headaches” of his life.
“It feels like my skull is split in two. This is the worst injury in terms of pain I’ve had in my life.”
He also says he is currently having bad memory issues where he can’t remember where he is or what he has just done.
“Words sometimes are getting lost on me. I’ll have a word in my head and I won’t be able to think of it. It won’t be an elaborate word it would be something simple like flowerpot,” he said.
The last thing Mr O’Rourke wants is to give Barcelona a “bad name” as he believes 99% of the people in the area he is in are “fantastic”.
“I might be in an area that is considered rough but I walk down the street now and I have every single neighbour ask me how am I doing.
“My local corner store keeper is checking up on me if he sees me in the street. Crimes like this happen and a disadvantaged area is given a bad name.
“There are going to be crimes like this in any area so don’t ever let it put you off from going to those areas.
“Don't let one bad incident shed a bad light on an area. It should be up to our governments to make sure these disadvantaged areas are looked after,” he mentioned.
Mr O'Rourke says he was unable to attend the recent Snoop Dogg concert in the 3 Arena in Dublin as he has remained in Spain since the assault.
“I was meant to see him for the first time in my life, my middle name is Snoop because my dad was at his concert around the time I was born.
“I've been waiting all my life to see him but I wasn't allowed to travel due to the head injury,” he said.