Coronavirus death toll more than doubles in Ireland as 10 new deaths reported

Ireland's coronavirus death toll has more than doubled in the last 24 hours with an additional 10 deaths being reported by the Department of Health this evening.

Three females and seven males have sadly passed away from the Covid-19 virus, with nine of these patients based in the east and one in the south.

The median age of patients diagnosed with COVID-19 who have died is 79 years, 68% are male and 32% are female.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has been informed of 255 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland, as at 1pm, Thursda 26 March.

There are now 1,819 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.

Today’s data from HPSC, as of midnight, Tuesday 24th March (1,383 cases), reveals:

• 55% are male and 45% are female, with 66 clusters involving 295 cases
• the median age of confirmed cases is 46 years
• 40 cases (25%) have been hospitalised
• of those hospitalised, 47 cases have been admitted to ICU
• 321 cases (23%) are associated with healthcare workers
• Dublin has the highest number of cases at 774, (56% of all cases) followed by Cork with 154 cases (11%)
• Of those for whom transmission status is known; community transmission accounts for 51%, close contact accounts for 22%, travel abroad accounts for 27%

Research conducted on behalf of the Department of Health shows that while 35% of people are worried about their personal health, 77% of people are worried about the health of their family and friends.

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The nationally representative online survey of 1,270 adults conducted today, which is conducted twice weekly, reveals:

• 66% of people say they are coughing into their elbow
• 81% say they are physical distancing when they are in a queue
• 65% of people are worried about the economy
• 32% of people are worried about their employment status

Dr. Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; “We are only at the beginning of the curve. We need every citizen to heed the advice and measures put in place to protect all of us.”

Dr. Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; “We are aware COVID-19 is impacting and reshaping daily life for everyone. We can see from the data that people are most concerned about their family and friends. If you look after yourself, restrict movement and follow advice, you will ultimately protect them.”

Dr. Breda Smyth, HSE Director of Public Health, said; “Protection from COVID-19 is literally in our hands. It is important that we continue to wash our hands and practice cough and sneeze hygiene constantly.”

Dr Colm Henry, HSE Chief Clinical Officer, said; “While the HSE is engaged in extensive preparations for COVID-19, the more we as individuals take personal responsibility to interrupt the spread of the virus, the greater impact we can have on protecting our vulnerable people and saving lives.”

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The latest statistics are also available on the COVID-19 Dashboard.

Social distancing still remains the most important factor in slowing the spread of the virus.

"Italy were very well provisioned - twice as well provisioned as we were," said Dr Catherine Motherway, President of the Intensive Care Society of Ireland in an interview with RTE earlier this evening.

We've had a warning; we've managed to create extra space, she added, but the emphasis now is on "controlling the surge" to ensure that there are enough beds and resources.

"If we can control the surge, we may have enough, but we can only do that if the population in its entirety takes into the spirit of this - the washing of the hands, the coughing etiquette, the keeping away from other people, and the staying at home. That is the primary way we will beat this problem and if people do that, they will give us the time and the space to treat sick people as they come in," said Dr Motherway.

"If we have a wave, I think we will be able to rise to meet that. But if we have a tsunami, if we don't control the surge, then we will have a difficulty. There is no doubt about it."

Worldwide, the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus has reached over half a million, with 510,686 cases reported across 198 countries, and 23,079 deaths in total.

The number of confirmed cases in Italy has been increasing rapidly over the past number of weeks with 80,539 confirmed cases and 8,215 deaths. China is still the country that has had the most reported infections with a total of 81,285 cases in total reported to date, including just 67 new cases in the last 24 hours.

Italy has been reporting thousands of new cases and hundreds of new deaths daily for some time now, with 6,153 newly diagnosed cases reported in the last 24 hours alone and 712 deaths. At 80,539 confirmed cases in total, Italy is less than 750 cases away from surpassing China as the country with the most confirmed cases in the world.

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