'Deeply concerning' rise in daily Covid-19 figures

200 new cases reported this evening

The Acting Chief Medical Officer Dr Ronan Glynn has described as “deeply concerning” the news that there have been another 200 new cases of Covid-19 reported in Ireland.

According to figures released this evening, almost half of the new cases are in counties which are currently in lockdown, namely Kildare, Laois and Offaly.

There have been no further deaths meaning the total of Covid-19-related deaths remains at 1,774.

Of the cases notified today 103 are men and 96 are women and 68% are under 45 years of age.

Of the cases, 68 are associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of a confirmed case and 25 cases have been identified as community transmission.

Of the cases, 56 are in Dublin, 81 in Kildare, 13 in Tipperary, eight in Limerick, six in Laois, six in Galway, five in Kilkenny, five in Meath and the rest of the 20 cases are in Carlow, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Louth, Mayo, Offaly, Roscommon, Waterford, Wicklow.

No new cases have been reported in Cavan.

“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,” said Dr Ronan Glynn.

“This is deeply concerning. The National Public Health Emergency Team (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.”

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