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Nphet has urged the government to shut down St. Stephen’s Day nonessential retail over fears about the rapid spread of the coronavirus.
The group of public health experts led by Medical Director Tony Holohan met today to discuss the growing number of Covid-19 cases and the emergence of a new strain of the virus in England.
After the meeting, a senior government source said the group recommended closing all non-essential retailers as of December 26.
At a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin and his ministers agreed to allow all retailers to remain open while imposing restrictions on other areas of the economy and society.
However, Martin asked retailers not to go ahead with the January sales for fear that this would lead to a large number of stores.
Restaurants and pubs will close tomorrow afternoon and new restrictions on home visits and cross-country travel will take effect after St. Stephen’s Day.
The cabinet will not meet again until December 29, and a decision on Nphet’s council is not expected until then.
The UK variant of the coronavirus is now in Ireland, Nphet announced tonight as 13 more deaths and 938 new coronavirus cases were announced in Ireland.
Preliminary data from the weekend suggests that the new variant of the coronavirus responsible for the lockdowns in the UK is now present in Ireland.
The reproductive R number is also at its highest level since March, estimated between 1.5 and 1.8.
Dr Cillian De Gascun, a medical virologist and director of the National Virus Reference Laboratory, said the data suggests that the new variant that is responsible for the blockages in the UK is now present in Ireland.
“Preliminary data would suggest, based on a selection of samples tested over the weekend, that the new UK variant is present in Ireland,” he said.
However, he said that this new variant is not solely responsible for the recent increase in cases.
“However, given the chronology of the samples analyzed, it would appear that the new variant is not solely responsible for the recent increase in the number of cases seen in Ireland.”
There have been a total of 2,184 coronavirus-related deaths and 82,155 confirmed cases in Ireland.
Of the cases reported today, 416 are men and 517 women. 65% are under 45 years old and the average age is 36 years.
There were 300 cases in Dublin, 110 in Cork, 72 in Limerick, 68 in Donegal, 41 in Kildare and the remaining 347 cases are spread over 21 other counties.
As of 2:00 p.m. today, there are 251 Covid-19 patients in the hospital, of which 25 are in the ICU. There have been 24 additional hospitalizations in the last 24 hours.
Nphet has made further recommendations to the government after a meeting today, as the epidemiological situation has “deteriorated” in the past 48 hours, according to Professor Philip Nolan, chairman of NPHET’s Irish Epidemiological Modeling Advisory Group.
The R number is now the highest since March and the situation has “deteriorated even further” in the past two days.
“The breeding number is higher than what we have reported since March at 1.5 – 1.8. The day-to-day growth rate is estimated at 7 – 9%. These data emphasize the need for us to be exceptionally careful during Christmas and we strictly adhere to the public health guidance, “he said.
“We have been affected by a virus that spreads and spreads rapidly and it is up to each and every one of us to observe all the guidelines, all the restrictions in force.”
Dr. Nolan also said at tonight’s press conference that he does not believe that the new measures that take effect on September 26 will bring the R number below one.
“I’m not sure they will, just given the nature of the measures and our experience to date, I’m not sure that alone they are sufficient,” he said.
Dr. Tony Holohan, medical director of the Department of Health, said that all indicators of the disease are “increasing and increasing rapidly.”
“All the indicators of the disease are increasing and increasing rapidly. Our level of concern continues to rise. We must do everything possible, individually and collectively, to change the course of this disease. “
Dr. Holohan once again encouraged the public to rethink their Christmas plans to limit “discretionary activities.”
“Every form of discretionary activity that each of us can remove from our individual experiences now, in the days and weeks to come, will help limit transmission.
“Think back to the plan you have,” he said.
Dr. Ronan Glynn, deputy chief medical officer for the Department of Health, said the epidemiological situation reviewed today is the most serious since last March.
“It is inevitable that people will get sick and die as a result of this escalation, but it is not too late for all of us to do everything we can to minimize that impact and protect as many people as possible.”
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