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In the midst of a situation that worsens with Covid-19 in Dublin, the government decided yesterday to move the capital to level 3 of its plan to live with Covid-19.
The new restrictions are already in effect and will remain so until October 9.
While the government said there is a clear goal to stop the spread of the virus with these new restrictions, the announcement has sparked despair and frustration in companies that must now close again.
Dubliners are told to stay in the county and leave it for essential purposes only, to only have visitors from another home in their home or garden, and to work from home unless absolutely necessary.
Now it is not allowed to eat inside in pubs and restaurants, and it is only allowed to eat inside for a maximum of 15 people.
Religious services must move online, parties and events are canceled, and covered cultural venues like museums are closed.
Garda checkpoints will resume, but the emphasis of the government and doctors is that people must take personal responsibility for following the measures.
“I know some people may not want to believe it, but this is getting serious again,” Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said last night.
At the same press conference, Acting Medical Director Dr. Ronan Glynn painted a clear picture of how Covid-19 has started to take hold again.
He said: “Tonight 80 people are in hospital with Covid in Ireland. This compares with just 22 in the hospital a month ago. In the entire month of August, four people died with Covid-19. Already in September, there have unfortunately been 17 deaths.
If we don’t interrupt transmission now, we are concerned that we may have more than 1,000 cases a day by mid-October, with half of them in Dublin.
At Level 3, schools remain open and Dr. Glynn recognized that “tough decisions” must be made in this regard.
“When we decide to downsize, it can be education, it can be healthcare, it can be restaurants and other social settings, and in that context, Level 3, sadly, is about making really tough decisions to downsize the social crowd,” he said. .
Acting Medical Director Dr. Ronan Glynn
Source: Julien Behal
Amid the grim numbers, Glynn also said “such an outcome is not inevitable” as he urged people to cut the number of people they come into contact with by half.
He said people should try to meet half of the people they met last week, as all efforts will be needed to cut transmission of the virus.
Hospitality
Yesterday there was confusion and concern on the part of pubs and restaurants before the government announcement, as they questioned the logic of closing their businesses that have adhered to the imposed restrictions.
Des Buckley, managing director of FX Buckley steakhouses, said it had cost the company 45,000 euros in lost inventory at five restaurants after they closed earlier this year.
“Now they ask us to do it again,” he said.
The Taoiseach said last night that such establishments could not be blamed.
He said: “There has been some criticism about the decision to pause indoor dining at restaurants and gourmet pubs for the next three weeks. People reasonably ask why. It is a very fair question.
“The fact is, while we see many cases spreading in people’s homes, the initial infection is occurring outside the home and in the community.
We have to keep the disease out of people’s homes first. Our decision to act now in the indoor dining room is not a reflection of the business owners who have done everything that was asked of them. We do this because we want to minimize the number of places where people can congregate and where the disease can spread over the next three weeks.
Following this, Dr. Glynn was asked about comments made by his colleague from the National Public Health Emergencies Team (NPHET) Professor Philip Nolan on Twitter, who said: “We would like to go back and find out where people get the virus, but no I don’t have the time or the resources to carry out this academic exercise ”.
(From left to right) Eamon Ryan, Leo Varadkar and Micheál Martin
Source: TOM HONAN
He explained, “So if I went to a restaurant, seven or eight days ago, as an example, and got the virus from another customer there, I would have no idea that I contracted it for several days until I develop symptoms.
“Then I go to my GP. Then I get a test, I get a test result after a day or two, I get a contact follow-up. At that stage, it is very, very difficult for me, as a person, or for the contact trackers I am speaking to, to precisely link my source of infection to a restaurant I was at several days ago.
But the international evidence is clear that restaurants, pubs, indoor environments like these are high-risk environments for the transmission of infectious diseases like this.
These comments did little to appease the Licensed Vintners Association, which represents Dublin publicans, who took aim at NPHET last night.
Its CEO Donall O’Keeffe said: “They are closing down swaths of businesses in Dublin, putting thousands of people out of work and yet NPHET admits they have no data to show where infections are emerging in Ireland.
Dublin pubs widely accepted and supported the approach taken by NPHET and the Government at the beginning of this crisis. The approach that is being taken is destroying that support among Dublin pubs. It is quite clear that NPHET is not in this together with the pubs of Ireland and the Government is on the sidelines and allows them to sacrifice our sector.
The government is releasing € 30 million in additional grants to businesses in Dublin, among other support, to try to help businesses that are bearing the brunt again, but the new support did not impress people like the Irish Hotel Federation.
Source: Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie
Its president Elaina Fitzgerald Kane said last night that the measures “are far from what is required.”
She said: “While the effects will be acutely felt in Dublin, they will also be detrimental to many tourism businesses across the country, with Dublin residents currently accounting for 30-50% of the domestic market.
Already hotels and guesthouses across the country are reporting that cancellations are up 35%, due to this week’s trickle news of the possible closure. It is also very discouraging that only six hours’ notice was given, showing little understanding of how our companies operate. “
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Risk groups
There are specific tips for those who are most at risk of getting seriously ill from Covid-19 in the new guide for Dublin.
People over the age of 70 and medically vulnerable people are advised to continue to exercise their own personal judgment, but it is recommended that they stay home as much as possible and limit their participation to a very small network for short periods of time.
They are also told to avoid public transportation and to shop during designated hours with only a face cover.
Another feature of the new restrictions is the suspension of visitor access to nursing homes, in addition to critical and compassionate circumstances.
Sage Advocacy, a charity that supports older people, said the new measures will have a detrimental effect.
Its CEO Sarah Lennon said: “” We fully appreciate why additional restrictions may be necessary in Dublin, but the government has failed to take into account that older people have the right to enjoy and live their lives and should not be unnecessarily penalized at this time simply because of their age.
” We understand that there will be times when specific risk assessments must be conducted in nursing homes, but we believe that suspending all visits at this time, outside of exceptional circumstances, will have a severe impact on both nursing home residents as in their families and stress and anguish. ”
Dublin will remain at level 3 for at least three weeks until Friday, October 9. The government said it will review the situation again, based on the status of the virus and current public health advice.
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