[ad_1]
Listowel in Kerry has the highest Covid-19 infection rate in Munster followed by the city of Cork, according to new data showing where the virus is spreading.
Data released by the Center for Health Surveillance and Protection shows where Covid-19 hotspots are emerging in 166 local electoral areas (LEAs) across the country in the previous 14 days.
As of Oct. 26, LEAs in Cavan, Meath and Galway had 14-day infection rates that were multiples of the national average of 307.6 cases per 100,000 residents, the latest figures show.
Ballyjamesduff in Cavan had the highest infection rate nationally with 1,484.4 cases per 100,000 residents, nearly five times the national infection rate. The town has a population of almost 26,000 inhabitants and 383 new cases were confirmed in the previous fortnight.
Infection rates were also three to four times the national average in Rathoath in Meath (1,365.6 cases per 100,000 population) and in central Galway City (1,018.7 cases per 100,000 population).
In Munster, Listowel LEA in Kerry had the highest infection rate in the province with 634.7 cases 100,000 inhabitants. In the previous two weeks, 182 new cases of Covid-19 were confirmed in the area, which has a population of more than 28,000.
Infection rates also remain high in Cork City’s five electoral areas, with rates above average.
The infection rate in south-central Cork is double the national average (625.9 cases per 100,000 inhabitants) and exceeds 400 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the electoral zones of the northwest, northwest, southeast and southwest of the city from Cork.
The figures show a dramatic change from the end of September, when the 14-day national infection rate stood at 177 cases per 100,000 residents and some LEAs were nearly Covid-free, with fewer than five cases reported in the previous fortnight.
The virus has now spread through the 166 LEAs, although there are some signs that infection rates may be starting to decline nationally, but the impacts of the Level 5 lockdown may not yet be apparent.
To date, 1,902 people have died from Covid-19 and more than 60,000 people have contracted the virus. More than 100 deaths from Covid-19 and 24,000 new cases were confirmed in the last month alone.
While there were some “positive trends,” HSE CEO Paul Reid said the service was on the lookout for a “multiple lag effect” involving viral spread from younger people to over 65s, which could result in increased hospital admissions and deaths.
[ad_2]