A second case of Coronavirus has been confirmed by the Republic’s Department of Health tonight.
The case involves a female in the east of Ireland who had travelled from northern Italy, according to reports from a Department press conference earlier this evening.
Officials say it is not unexpected and Ireland remains on ‘containment’ mode with no community transmission.
So far, 397 people have been tested and the results have been negative with the exception of the two confirmed cases.
No decision has been made on St Patrick’s Day celebrations in the Republic, but it is understood senior officials will introduce guidance on mass attendance events in coming days.
The Department of Foreign Affairs has updated travel guidance for Italy. It states: "For the moment, we are advising against non-essential travel to the regions of Lombardy, Veneto, Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna."
Officials say they were only notified this evening of the new case and the process of tracing contacts and notifying those contacts has begun.
