The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
There has been one more diagnosed Covid-19 case in Clare bringing to 66 the number of patients in the county being treated for the virus.
The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has also confirmed that 25 people diagnosed with Covid-19 in Ireland have died, bringing the total number of deaths to 235.
Of the latest deaths, 13 occurred in the east, eight in the north and two in both the south and the west of the country. The deaths included 10 females and 15 males and 18 people were reported as having underlying health conditions.
There were also 365 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 as at 1pm today. There are now 6,074 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.
The HSE is now working to identify any contacts the patients may have had to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.
A total of 1,472 cases (25%) have been hospitalised and of those, 224 cases have been admitted to ICU. Some 1,568 cases are associated with healthcare workers and Dublin has the highest number of cases at 3,268, (55% of all cases) followed by Cork with 431 cases (7%).
The National Public Health Emergency Team noted today’s guidance from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) that it is currently too early to start lifting community and physical distancing measures.
Dr. Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; “Ireland continues to follow ECDC guidance with regards to testing, contact tracing and the implementation of community measures such as physical distancing and cocooning. This is the most effective way we have of slowing down the spread of this virus and saving lives.”
Dr. Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; “The ECDC has said that the probability of continued spread of COVID-19 is very high. The risk of exceeding the capacity of the health system remains high even in countries like Ireland where significant public health restrictions have been put in place.
“It is for these reasons that we continue to ask people to stay at home and to follow public health advice. While we know these measures are difficult especially as we approach a sunny, bank holiday weekend, the efforts we are seeing from the public are having an impact and making a real difference.”
