Slight increase in Covid-19 cases as 313 announced, three more deaths

Health experts have announced another 313 new Covid-19 cases registered in Ireland.

And in heartbreaking news, three more people have lost their lives.

This now brings the total number of cases in the Republic to 75,507, while the death toll has risen to 2,120.

Currently, there are 197 patients receiving treatment for the deadly virus in hospital, 35 of whom are in intensive care.

Another 12 people were admitted in the last 24 hours.

Of those diagnosed, 169 were women and 14 men, while 67% were under 45 years of age.

The average age of those infected was 35 years.

The news, which was announced by the National Public Health Emergency Team tonight, comes as the country enters its second weekend outside the lockdown.

‘Level 3’ saw the return of retail, restaurants, food service pubs, gyms, hair salons and barbers last week.

But some of the country’s leading experts fear that more socialization during the holiday period could cause cases to skyrocket.

NPHET told the government in a recent letter that they anticipate a three-week shutdown after Christmas.

Meanwhile, NPHET member Professor Philip Nolan praised the public for adhering to the new rules since restrictions were eased last week.

He said the breeding number has held steady, despite retail stores, barbers, hair salons, gyms, pubs and restaurants reopening last week.

There was a big jump in ‘mobility’ across the country, he said, but the fact that both cases and the ‘R’ number have remained stable shows that society is clearly following the rules.

The chair of NPHET’s Irish Epidemiological Modeling Advisory Group said: “The reproduction number is now estimated to be close to 1.0.

“This is a testament to the large number of people who continue to limit their contacts and follow public health advice.

“Keep in mind that it is still a very dangerous virus, especially for the elderly and vulnerable.

“We have the knowledge and determination to continue to suppress this disease, to protect our family and friends during Christmas.”