[ad_1]
Dublin is likely to face a Christmas lockdown and coronavirus cases are unlikely to fall in the capital for months, a top medical adviser warned.
The cabinet is meeting tonight and is expected to approve the nationwide move to Level 5 of the Living With COVID plan for six weeks.
But DCU health systems professor Anthony Staines cautioned that while these new measures are likely to save the holiday season in most parts of the country, cases are unlikely to drop in Dublin until at least January.
“We have modeled a lot and the guide says that Dublin will be under significant restrictions to reduce cases until January,” he told the Irish Daily Mail.
“There are too many cases. We have had level 3 and the number of cases in most of the country has not even stabilized.
“It may have stabilized in Dublin, but it hasn’t come down.”
He continued: “As you narrow down in a county, you can lower the level of restriction in the county as long as you control who enters and who leaves the county.
“That’s a very complicated way of saying that you could open large parts of the country substantially for Christmas.”
Health chiefs announced another 1,031 cases of the killer virus tonight, with 235 in Dublin.
The government is likely to push the country to the tightest level of restrictions until the end of November after medical director Dr. Tony Holohan warned last week that the virus was spiraling out of control.
Sign up for the Dublin Live coronavirus newsletter by simply entering your email address in this article here.
The FREE email will arrive in your inbox every morning around 9:30 am and will bring you the latest news you need to know about the coronavirus in Ireland.
Whether it’s the latest restrictions, supermarket opening hours, schools and workplaces or anything else, this newsletter will cover it all.
You can unsubscribe from this service at any time. And rest assured that your data will not be shared with any other party.
Non-essential retailers and services, such as hair salons, barbers, toy stores and gyms, must close under the new rules, but schools and daycare centers seem likely to remain open.
Pubs, cafes and restaurants will only be able to serve take out food and travel restrictions are also expected, possibly on the order of 10 kilometers.
An announcement confirming the new restrictions is expected around 9pm tonight and you can follow the latest updates on our blog live.
[ad_2]