through which Protestants also surged through, smashing the windows of Catholic homes. Nationalists lobbed stones and petrol bombs from the top of the high-rise Rossville Flats, halting the police advance, and injuring 43 of the 59 officers who made the initial incursion. When the advantage of this position was realised, the youths were kept supplied with stones and petrol bombs. Groups of loyalists and nationalists continued to throw stones and petrol bombs at each other. The actions of the Bogside residents were co-ordinated to some extent. The DCDA set up a headquarters in the house of Paddy Doherty in Westland Street and tried to supervise the making of petrol bombs and the positioning of barricades. Petrol bomb workshops and first aid posts were set up. A radio transmitter, "Radio Free Derry", broadcast messages encouraging resistance and called on "every able-bodied man in Ireland who believes in freedom" to defend the Bogside. Many local people, however, joined in the rioting on their own initiative and impromptu leaders also emerged, such as McCann, Bernadette Devlin and others. The RUC were not well prepared for the riot. Their riot shields were too small and did not protect their whole bodies. Furthermore, their uniforms were not flame resistant and some officers were badly burned by petrol bombs. Moreover, there was no system in place to relieve officers, with the result that the same policemen had to serve in the rioting for three days without rest. The overstretched police also resorted to throwing stones back at the Bogsiders, and were helped by loyalists. Late on 12 August, police began flooding the area with CS gas, which caused a range of respiratory injuries among local people. A total of 1,091 canisters, each containing 12.5g of CS; and fourteen canisters containing 50g of CS, were fired into the densely-populated residential area. On 13 August, Jack Lynch, Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of the Republic of Ireland, made a televised speech about the events in Derry, saying "the Irish Government can no longer stand by and see innocent people injured and perhaps worse". He said he had "asked the British Government to see to it that police attacks on the people of Derry should cease immediately", and called for a United Nations peacekeeping force to be sent to Derry. Lynch also announced that the Irish Army was being sent to the border to set up field hospitals for those civilians