A further four people have died and there are 88 new cases of coronavirus in Ireland, it has emerged.
The latest update from the National Public Health Emergency Team is in.
The news takes the death toll here to 1,547.
There have now been 24,200 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the Republic.
The new cases were notified as of 11am on Monday, May 18.
Today’s data from the HPSC, as of midnight, Saturday, May 16 (24,036 cases), reveals:
57% are female and 43% are male
the median age of confirmed cases is 48 years
3,127 cases (13%) have been hospitalised
Of those hospitalised, 391 cases have been admitted to ICU
7,615 cases are associated with healthcare workers
Dublin has the highest number of cases at 11,693 (49% of all cases) followed by Kildare with 1,367 cases (6%) and then Cork with 1,361 cases (5%)
Of those for whom transmission status is known: community transmission accounts for 60%, close contact accounts for 37%, travel abroad accounts for 3%
Dr. Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said: “On the first day of Ireland moving into Phase One of reopening we have experienced the lowest number of deaths since March 27. We have suppressed the virus and limited its impact on public health. We need to sustain this in the weeks and phases ahead.”
Dr Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, said; “Every death is one too many, but the collective effort to date has saved many lives. We must save more by practicing physical distancing, especially in queues and public spaces, respiratory etiquette and hand washing.”
Dr Siobhan Ni Bhriain, Consultant Psychiatrist and HSE Integrated Care Lead, said: “Moving into a new phase in Ireland’s response to COVID-19, we now have an opportunity to increase our exercise activity up to five kilometres and participate with a friend outside of the household.
"I would urge anyone who can, to take advantage of this in order to improve mental health and wellbeing.”
