Coronavirus
Four more cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the Republic of Ireland.
The two men and two women are from the west of the country and are believed to be from the same family.
These latest confirmed cases bring the number of people affected by Covid-19 to nine on the island of Ireland.
However, they have all travelled here from an affected area.
They did not contract the virus from someone else here- as has happened at least four times in the UK.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth if possible– if you touch your eyes, nose or mouth with contaminated hands, you can transfer the virus from the surface to yourself. pic.twitter.com/J6dFJuZwYz
— Department of Health (@roinnslainte) March 4, 2020
Dr Tony Holohan, chief medical officer with the Department of Health, said:
"Tonight we can confirm there are now six cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.
"Contact tracing is underway for these four new cases."
Dr Ronan Glynn, deputy chief medical officer, added:
"There is still no evidence of widespread or sustained community transmission in Ireland, as seen in some other EU countries.
"While we now have six confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland, we continue our containment efforts, central to which is that the public know what to do in the event they have symptoms."
