50 students at the University of Limerick were referred for Covid-19 tests yesterday, up from under 5 just two weeks ago.
It comes as the Department of Public Health Mid-West identifies a number of clusters in the Castletroy area.
There's also evidence of social mixing in 0ff-campus accommodation, which is contributing to the outbreak.
COVID-19 update in Mid-West region (February 21, 2021):
Limerick - 49 cases
Clare - 16 cases
North Tipperary - <5 cases pic.twitter.com/db6ANZcAM0— Public Health Mid-West (@PublicHealthMW) February 23, 2021
Dr Marie Casey from the Mid-West health board said many of the gatherings were only discovered during follow-up calls with close contacts.
"We are also noticing that some people are building wider 'social bubbles', whereby some people within the same household are exposed to separate social settings, such as visiting partners or classmates."
The University has responded to the outbreak by providing a second round of tests.
UL students can avail of the tests for free and do not have to present with symptoms to get checked out.
📢 UL Students 📢: We are facilitating FREE on campus #COVIDー19 testing for all students by @PublicHealthMW later this week. Check your student email for registration details.
— University Of Limerick (@UL) February 22, 2021
Testing will run on campus from this Thursday to Sunday week.
