Dr Tony Holohan has issued an urgent warning as he said that we could now be seeing a greater spread than at any point in the pandemic so far.
The Chief Medical Officer was responding after Ireland was hit by a staggering rise in new cases with 3,394 more infections confirmed.
The latest figures were announced by the Department of Health this evening.
Cork was the hardest-hit region in the country, reporting 389 new cases, followed by Dublin with 355.
Donegal also reported 339, while Louth had 258, and Mayo saw 233.
And reacting to today's surge, the CMO said: “The incidence of COVID-19 is as high, if not higher now than it was in March. Every individual needs to act as if they are infectious.
"Hospitalisations are rising to levels close to what we saw in the springtime. Everyone needs to stay at home other than for essential work or care.
“It is really important that vulnerable and older people do not leave their homes unless absolutely essential. This includes asking neighbours or family to carry out errands such as grocery shopping, limiting all contacts to only those people you live with or have to visit for essential care reasons.
“We need to rediscover the spirit of solidarity and community we saw in March and April so that we can all do our part in protecting older and vulnerable people.
“People particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 include older persons and people with pre-existing medical conditions including cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease and cancer.”
Here is a full county-by-county breakdown of today's new cases:
Monaghan - 130
Donegal - 339
Louth - 258
Limerick - 209
Sligo - 150
Mayo - 233
Cavan - 92
Wexford - 103
Kilkenny - 87
Kerry - 98
Laois - 104
Dublin - 355
Meath - 179
Cork - 389
Roscommon - 68
Galway - 116
Carlow - 41
Clare - 65
Offaly - 86
Longford - 39
Waterford - 67
Westmeath - 33
Kildare - 47
Leitrim - 29
Tipperary - 59
Wicklow - 18
