On a day which saw loyalist violence spiral out of control across Belfast, nationalist residents of the Grosvenor Road found themselves having to protect their homes from a 200-strong mob that had flooded across the Westlink from the direction of Sandy Row.
At approximately 2pm on Saturday afternoon, the large crowd was spotted running across the Westlink causing chaos to passing motorists as they made their way on to the upper Grosvenor Road.
Shouting abuse and threats at the locals, the mob were able to make it as far as St Joseph's Primary School before residents came out in force to protect their homes.
Speaking to the Andersonstown News, Sinn Féin's Fra McCann said it was a "disgrace" that so many loyalists had made it so far up the road without being intercepted by the PSNI.
"These people came a far enough distance, they had to cut across the Westlink on a busy Saturday afternoon to get to the Grosvenor Road. Even more importantly, they had to pass the heavily fortified Grosvenor Road barracks and it is a disgrace that they were able to do so."
Councillor McCann said many locals feared a repeat of Bombay Street in 1969 when Catholics were burnt out of their homes by loyalists.
"This mob was making threats, telling the residents that they were gong to be burnt out, they were throwing missiles, shouting sectarian abuse, they smashed the windscreen of a car and were doing their best to get to a statue of Our Lady that was in the garden of a house in Devonshire Street," said Councillor McCann.
It wasn't until people heard the mob and came out of their homes and local shops to defend themselves that the crowd finally retreated back across the Westlink.
"The young people of this area must be commended for their efforts in chasing this mob from the road.
"This was an orchestrated attack which saw loyalists clearly try to provoke nationalists into a riot situation but our appeals for calm and restraint were heard and nationalists refused to get involved."
