A 14-year-old boy who passed away due to Covid has become the youngest person to die from the virus in the Republic of Ireland.
The young boy was one of 25 people recorded between November 3rd and November 9th who had died from Covid.
The Health Surveillance Protection Centre had previously reported the youngest Covid death as 17.
The boy brings the total number of people to die from Covid under the age of 25 to six.
No further details of the 14-year-old have been released.
The news comes after health officials reported a further 3,680 cases on Thursday, with 543 now in hospital, 97 of whom are in ICU.
Concern over Ireland's growing case numbers has sparked Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan to ask people to half their social contacts after case numbers have failed to drop below 3,000 a day in almost two weeks.
He said: "A pandemic can be a long and exhausting experience, and I am aware that we are all tired of this virus – but the reality is that the virus is here and is circulating at too high a level.
"The virus moves when we are in close contact with a Covid positive person. This person could be a family member, a friend, a colleague or a stranger. It could be someone with no symptoms who is fully vaccinated.
"The action needed now is for all of us to reduce our social contacts and give the virus less opportunity to spread. Reduce the people you intend to meet this week by half. If we all do this collectively, we can suppress current levels of infection."
On Wednesday, the Department of Public Health Mid West issued the warning amid a surge in case numbers.
It said: "We are advising people in Limerick, Clare, and North Tipperary to limit social activity in order to reduce the level of Covid-19 in the community.
"Infection rates have doubled in the region in recent weeks, similar to January levels.
"Unlike the January wave, we are seeing a lower incidence of illness and death thanks to the successful vaccination programme, thus far.
"However, due to the sharp escalation in new cases in recent weeks, breakthrough infections with serious outcomes are more likely to occur."
The health body added that in the fortnight leading up to November 8, there were 3,374 Covid-19 cases recorded in the mid-west region.
These include 1,801 in Limerick, 1,027 in Clare, and 546 in North Tipperary.
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