Second Irish person dies from Covid-19 as 39 new cases confirmed
A SECOND Irish person has died from Covid-19 while 39 new cases in Ireland have been confirmed by the Department of Health.
The person who died is from the east of the country.
There are now 129 confirmed cases in Ireland and a further 34 confirmed cases in Northern Ireland.
Among the new cases are 29 males and 10 females.
Twenty-one are associated with the east of the country, 13 with the south, three in the north west and two in the west of Ireland.
Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said: “It is up to every one of us to play our role in slowing down the spread of this disease.
"Today’s increase in cases reinforces the necessity of the measures put in place last week, including hand and respiratory hygiene, social distancing, school closures and limiting the size of mass gatherings."
Deputy chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn said: “There are many anecdotal stories of people ignoring the social distancing guidelines laid out on Thursday.
"We are in an unprecedented global situation.
"Everyone in the country must play their part in protecting the most vulnerable and slowing down the spread of the disease."
Meanwhile, the HSE said it working to ensure “sufficient testing facilities” are in place by Monday for the Covid-19 coronavirus following “high demand” in recent days.
A number of people, including GPs, have reported having issues contacting the HSE via phone in relation to patients with symptoms associated with the coronavirus.
In a statement today, the HSE said “GP Out of Hours Services, HSELive and 112/999 have been receiving a very high number of calls today from people seeking access to testing for COVID-19."
It is now working to have additional electronic testing facilities up and running by Monday to meet the increase in demand.
CHECK out Mayo community pharmacist Mark Jordan's advice on controlling the spread of Covid-19 at the following link:
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