Thirteen deaths and 505 new confirmed Covid-19 cases in Northern Ireland

NORTHERN IRELAND HAS confirmed that another 505 people have tested positive for Covid-19.

In its latest update this afternoon, the Northern Ireland Department of Health reported that 13 more people have died from the virus.

In total, there have been 61,942 cases of Covid-19 in Northern Ireland and 1,196 deaths since the first outbreak of the virus earlier this year.

Hospitals in Northern Ireland are currently operating at 96% occupancy, while 421 Covid-19 patients are hospitalized and 30 in the ICU.

There are 82 active Covid-19 outbreaks in nursing homes in the north.

Yesterday, there were 640 new cases and 17 deaths reported in Northern Ireland.

From December 26 to January 2, essential retail, meetings and home visits to gardens in Northern Ireland will be subject to a curfew.

England, Scotland and Wales are introducing stricter last-minute restrictions before Christmas in a bid to stop the spread of a new variant of the coronavirus.

However, the new strain has yet to be identified in Northern Ireland.