Nine further coronavirus-related deaths have been reported in Northern Ireland on Wednesday.
The death toll from the Department of Health now stands at 2,725.
The fatalities are said to have occurred during the current reporting period.
A further 995 positive Covid cases have also been recorded in NI today.
This brings the total number of positive cases to 278,329 since the start of the pandemic, according to the Department of Health.
Over the past seven days, the Department said 7,779 individuals have tested positive in Northern Ireland.
According to figures released on Wednesday, there are currently 378 Covid-19 confirmed patients in hospital and 39 in intensive care.
Meanwhile, the Public Health Agency has confirmed that the ‘Delta plus’ Coronavirus variant has been detected in Northern Ireland.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the agency said 125 cases of ‘ COVID -19 Variant Under Investigation VUI-21OCT-01’ have been detected as ‘confirmed and probable cases as of 27 October 2021’.
The new strain, which is a mutation of the existing Delta variant, has been found in at least 42 countries, according to the World Health Organisation.
The PHA says the UK Health Security Agency has designated Delta plus as a ‘Variant Under Investigation’, but it is not currently a ‘variant of interest or concern’.
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