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Dublin ferry forced to u-turn as pub brawl sparks fracas at sea after man’s ear bitten off

The video of the fight has circulated all over the world, and shows the nasty fracas on the Irish Ferries sailing

Eamon Dillon

Today at 15:40

A fight in a UK pub in which a man’s ear was bitten sparked a wild brawl on board a ferry bound for Wales from Dublin last weekend.

The video of the ferry fight has circulated all over the world, and shows the nasty fracas on the Irish Ferries sailing.

The fight stemmed from a previous dispute between members of two rival families based in England, according to Sunday World sources.

There had been tension between various individuals following the London pub fracas, in which a man was set upon by a group.

It broke out into violence on the ferry where there was an unexpected encounter as an individual returned from a funeral in the west of Ireland.

This week there were messages posted on social media between people connected to those involved in the dispute.

The alleged victim of the London assault said in a video posted online that the attacker “and his sons are getting it, I’m not going after anyone else”.

“He was the worst of them.”

His comments came after two members of the other family had called the alleged victim to distance themselves from the attack, with one of them saying he was “ashamed” at what happened.

The viral video showed the fight which broke out in a restaurant on the Irish Ferries ship as it left Dublin Port on Saturday afternoon.

Those involved are connected to the people at the centre of the London incident. Tempers flared when they unexpectedly encountered each other on the ship, according to Sunday World sources.

As innocent passengers were sitting down to enjoy lunch, there was chaos as one of those involved in the fight grabbed tongs from the buffet to use as a weapon.

A man who had blood on the side of his face pointed and then jabbed the tongs at another man who had his fists up. Blood was splattered on the floor as bystanders quickly got out of the way.

One woman is seen grabbing a man by the hair and trying to drag him to the ground as catering staff and ferry employees try to calm the situation.

As a result, the ship immediately turned back to Dublin where gardai had been alerted. Two people were arrested in connection with the incident.

In a statement, Irish Ferries said: “Irish Ferries can confirm that there was a public order issue on board yesterday’s 13.50 Dublin Swift sailing from Dublin to Holyhead shortly after departure.

“Irish Ferries places the highest importance on safety and therefore decided to immediately return to Dublin port, where the Irish authorities dealt with the incident. The ship resumed sailing at 15.52.

“Irish Ferries apologises to passengers whose travel was disrupted by this issue and continues to assist the authorities who are investigating the incident.”

A statement from gardai said: “Gardai are investigating a public order incident that occurred on the afternoon of Saturday 8th July 2023 on a ferry near Dublin Port. As part of this investigation, two men (aged in their 30s and 40s) were arrested and detained at a Dublin Garda station.”

It was added that two men had been charged and were due to appear at Dublin District Court.