Coronavirus: 200 New Cases Confirmed

National news updates on Saturday 15th August.

Latest figures:

There have been no new deaths reported to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre today.

There has now been a total of 1,774 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland.

As of midnight Friday 14^th August, the HPSC has been notified of 200 confirmed cases of COVID-19. There is now a total of 27,191* confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland. 

Of the cases notified today;

• 103 are men / 96 are women
• 68% are under 45 years of age
• 68 are confirmed to be associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of a confirmed case
• 25 cases have been identified as community transmission
• 56 in Dublin, 81 in Kildare, 13 in Tipperary, 8 in Limerick, 6 Laois, 6 in Galway, 5 in Kilkenny, 5 in Meath and the rest of the 20 cases are in Carlow, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Louth, Mayo, Offaly, Roscommon, Waterford, Wicklow. 

The HSE is working to identify any contacts the patients may have had to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.

The COVID-19 Dashboard provides up-to-date information on the key indicators of COVID-19 in the community.

Dr Ronan Glynn, Acting Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; “This is the largest number of cases in a single day since the beginning of May. We now have multiple clusters with secondary spread of disease and rising numbers of cases in many parts of the country. This is deeply concerning. NPHET will monitor this extremely closely over the coming days.”

“This virus is still out there and has not gone away. COVID-19 seeks to capitalise on complacency and is just waiting for the opportunity to spread. I am asking everyone, especially those who are over 70 or medically vulnerable, to limit your contacts, keep your distance from other people and take extra care to heed public health advice.”

Validation of data at the HPSC led to the denotification of four confirmed cases including one in Offaly. The figure of 27,191 reflects this.

Department of Health statistics measured at midnight on Thursday 13 August, show there have been 593 cases confirmed in Offaly, Laois has had 349 people diagnosed with the illness, while Westmeath's total stands at 682. 

Note: The acting Chief Medical Officer, Ronan Glynn, releases figures for the counties with the highest number of cases for the previous 24 hours. The county by county breakdown from the Department of Health is based on figures from two days ago. 

Travel:

Travellers returning to Northern Ireland from France - and five other destinations - will have to self-isolate for two weeks, under new quarantine restrictions.

Thousands of holidaymakers tried to beat this morning's deadline by rushing home yesterday as the UK updated it's list following a rise in coronavirus cases.

Paul Charles is in charge of the campaign group Quash Quarantine.

He says the government should change its focus:

Tipperary:

There's a worry Tipperary could be placed into lockdown by Monday if a Covid-19 outbreak at one of its mushroom plants isn't contained.

11 staff at Walsh Mushrooms in Golden are reported to have contracted the virus, with operations now suspended while all 170 of its workers are tested.

Local Fine Gael Councillor Michael Fitzgerald says the next 48 hours will be crucial to determine how far the virus has spread.

He says the outbreak's concerning for the community there:

Pubs:

The government's considering allowing pubs that serve food open for longer.

All pubs and restaurants are currently expected to close at 11pm under Covid-19 rules.

However the Irish Independent reports that could be extended in order to discourage house parties.

Restrictions:

The Irish College of General Practitioners is warning 'any county could be next to lockdown' due to Covid-19.

It follows a recent jump in cases in roughly 20 counties.

ICGP lead on Covid-19, Dr. Nuala O'Connor, says the daily average nationwide is now 75, compared to 10 back in June.

She says the numbers are a 'wake up call' and people need to redouble their efforts:

Local figures:

The acting chief medical officer's urging people to do all they can to avoid a return to where we were in March and April.

It's after 67 cases of Covid-19 were reported yesterday. 

18 in Dublin, 17 in Kildare, 9 in Clare, 5 in Limerick, and the rest of the 18 cases are in Carlow, Cork, Donegal, Laois, Longford, Offaly, Tipperary, Wexford, Wicklow.

Department of Health statistics measured at midnight on Wednesday 12 August show there have been 682 cases recorded in Westmeath, Offaly's total stands at 594, meanwhile 345 people in Laois have contracted the illness. 

Dr Ronan Glynn says cases are rising all across the country this week.

And Dr Madeleine Ní Dhálaigh, from the Irish Medical Organisation, is calling for people to be cautious over the weekend:

Note: The acting Chief Medical Officer, Ronan Glynn, releases figures for the counties with the highest number of cases for the previous 24 hours. The county by county breakdown from the Department of Health is based on figures from two days ago.