Two more people have died in Ireland from Covid-19 bringing to 1,783 the number of lives lost.
Added to that the Health Protection Surveillance Centre has been notified of 159 more confirmed cases of the virus, meaning to date there’s been 30,730 positive tests in the country as of midnight Friday, 11 September.
Dublin accounts for 75 of the latest instances, with ten in Louth, six each in Cork, Meath & Donegal while Laois & Wexford both have five.
The remaining 46 are spread in pockets of ‘less than five’ across 17 different counties, including Carlow & Kilkenny as well as neighbouring Kildare, Wicklow, Waterford & Tipperary.
More women than men are among the figures (89/70) and 65% are aged under 45 years. 51% are associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of a confirmed case while 23 cases have been identified as community transmission
According to Acting Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Ronan Glynn “47% of the cases reported today are in Dublin City and County. For the people of Dublin in particular, this is a critical moment to address the spread of the disease in the community. Individual choices can make all the difference – reconsider your plans for the weekend, reduce the number of people that you meet and avoid social activities that involve large groups of people”.
He adds “Covid-19 is a highly infectious disease that can spread even when you have no symptoms. Remember, when you do meet with friends, family and colleagues, staying two meters apart is the best way to keep everyone safe.”
Meanwhile in the UK the latest figures show another 3,500 have tested positive for coronavirus in the last 24 hours.
That’s a 36% increase on last Saturday, although very slightly less than yesterday.
A further nine people have died with a positive test for Covid-19.
And the latest Scottish government statistics show a total of 221 people tested positive for the virus in the past 24 hours.
That’s the highest daily figure since 8 May.
Although there were no more deaths linked to the virus.