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A total of 301 more people have tested positive for coronavirus in Ireland, while no further deaths have been confirmed.
It brings the number of infections here to 74,246 since the outbreak began.
The latest figures were announced today by the Department of Health.
Of today’s cases, 119 were reported in Dublin, 32 in Donegal, 16 in Cork, 13 in Kildare, 13 in Kilkenny, and the remaining 108 cases are spread across 18 other counties.
As of 2:00 p.m. today, 231 COVID-19 patients are hospitalized, of which 28 are in the ICU. There were 8 additional hospitalizations in the last 24 hours.
It comes after the leader of the Green Party, Eamon Ryan, said that there is a reasonable possibility that Ireland will face a third wave of the coronavirus.
The Minister of Transport and Environment, Climate and Communications has also said that people can judge whether they will return home at Christmas.
(Image: Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin)
I was speaking with Gavan Reilly in Newstalk this morning and he confirmed that he would be willing to have the COVID-19 vaccine live in the air.
When asked about traveling home for Christmas, he stressed that it is important not to “embarrass” people who travel.
He said: “They are the best to make that call. It is not up to the Government to make those calls, it is up to each individual to make those calls. We are not promoting a large number of returning people.
“I think this [guidelines] it’s working fine for us. What we shouldn’t be doing is embarrassing those people [who may travel]. We don’t know the individual circumstances. “
And while he admitted that there is a possibility of a third wave of COVID-19 in Ireland in the New Year, he defended the government’s decision to reopen the economy, despite NPHET’s cautionary warning.
He continued: “It was a difficult balancing act [making decision based on NPHET advice]. We decided to open earlier than recommended by NPHET, it is a very difficult equation. It is a guide, like on busy streets like Henry Street, wear a mask. We learned that retail was a good and safe environment. We had to make some judgment decisions. “
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