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Coronavirus: 60 further deaths and 3,231 new cases in Ireland

There have been 3,231 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in the Republic, according to the Departmen...
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98FM

17.53 16 Jan 2021


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Coronavirus: 60 further deaths...

Coronavirus: 60 further deaths and 3,231 new cases in Ireland

98FM
98FM

17.53 16 Jan 2021


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There have been 3,231 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in the Republic, according to the Department of Health.

60 further deaths associated with the virus have also been reported, 59 of which occurred in January with one death from December.

The latest figures bring the total amount of cases here to 169,780, while the number of coronavirus-related deaths stands at 2,595.

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The numbers are reflective of the denotification of seven confirmed cases of the virus and one death.

Of the latest cases, 54% are under 45 years of age, while the median age is 42 years old.

The median age of those who died is 85 years, and the age range is 65 to 100 years.

Regarding the nationwide distribution of cases, 931 are in Dublin, 388 in Cork, 238 in Louth, 155 in Waterford, 151 in Limerick, and the remaining 1,368 cases are spread across all other counties.

new covid cases

As of 2pm today, 1,854 people are now receiving treatment in hospital for the virus after 119 new admissions in the past 24 hours.

Of those patients, 191 are in ICU, up from 184 yesterday.

The 14-day incidence rate per 100,000 of the population now stands at 1530.2.

Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health said the virus "has taken root in every single part of the country".

He said that a "significant percentage of the population", above one in ten in some counties is currently either a case or a close contact, which is "a huge burden of infection".

"When you consider that a significant percentage of our daily cases will directly lead to hospitalisation and mortality, the urgency with which we need to act becomes clear," he added.

"By staying at home, you are protecting our health and social care services as they struggle against the enormous burden of infection that many weeks with thousands of daily cases of COVID-19 represents.

Dr Holohan stated that the reduction in cases "is not happening fast enough" and that "too many people are still not complying as fully as we need with the advice".

"There are early indications that we may be levelling off in terms of improvement, but at far, far too high a level of infection. The UK variant is very likely making our challenge more difficult," he said.

He urged people to follow the public health advice as the safest place at the moment is at home.

COVID-19 sign in Dublin File photo. Picture by: Niall Carson/PA Wire/PA Images

'Inevitable' variant will become dominant strain

Dr Cillian de Gascun, Medical Virologist and Director of the National Virus Reference Laboratory, said that "due to the nature of the mutation found in the UK variant, it is inevitable that it will become the dominant variant here in Ireland over time".

"The UK variant has adapted to us: simply put, it is better at moving from person to person when we come into contact," he warned.

He said we must "reduce its opportunities to spread" by cutting out socialising, staying home, not visiting other houses or attending illegal gatherings.

He added: "Remember the simple and effective measures from springtime – wash your hands well and often, wear a mask, cough and sneeze into your elbow, keep 2 metres of space from others, and phone your GP at the very first sign of COVID-19 symptoms."

Meanwhile, 705 new cases of COVID-19 have been recorded in Northern Ireland in the last 24 hours.

There have also been 22 additional deaths reported by the Department of Health there.

Main image: Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health. Photo: Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie

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14-day Incidence Rate Coronavirus Covid-19 Covid-19 Ireland Dr Tony Holohan ICU Admissions NPHET

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