No further deaths, 68 new cases of Covid-19

There have been no new deaths reported to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HSPC) today.

There has been a total of 1,772 Covid-19 related deaths in Ireland.

As of midnight on Saturday August 8, the HPSC has been notified of 68 confirmed cases of Covid-19. There has now been a total of 26,712 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.

Of the cases notified today:

– 37 are men and 31 are women

– 82% are under 45 years of age

– 41 are confirmed to be associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of a confirmed case

– 2 cases have been identified as community transmission

– 19 cases are located in Kildare, 17 in Dublin, 15 in Offaly, 12 in Laois and 5 in Donegal.

The HSE is working to identify any contacts the patients may have had to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.

The number of cases confirmed in Westmeath during the week August 2-9 to was two, bringing the total number of cases confirmed in the county since March to 682.

Dr Ronan Glynn, Acting Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said:

“We continue to see cases linked to the outbreaks in counties where additional public health measures have been introduced. This was expected and we will continue to monitor closely.

“From tomorrow face coverings will be mandatory in retail and other indoor settings like hairdressers, cinemas and museums. We know that most people are already wearing face coverings and we hope to see even greater uptake over the coming days.

“Time and again people have shown their willingness to follow public health guidance in the interest of protecting each other from this disease.

“Wearing a face covering is just one more way in which people can demonstrate their solidarity with one another as we seek to suppress the spread of Covid-19.”