It’s a worrying trend.

The number of Covid-19 cases detected in Cork is on the rise, with experts appealing to the public to cut half their social contacts to help stall the spread of the disease.

A total of 396 new cases of coronavirus, the highest figure in four months, were reported on Sunday, 241 of which were Dublin. There were no further deaths.

The remaining 155 cases were spread across 22 other counties, with 36 cases of Covid-19 recorded in Cork in the past three days.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland this morning, the Chair of the National Public Health Emergency Team’s Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group Professor Philip Nolan said that limiting contacts is an effective way to bring the surge in cases under control.

“If in 10 days time that number is stabilising, people should stay with us then, keep with us for the remainder of two-three weeks to see if we can get the trend downwards,” he said.

‘It’s serious again but we can turn this around’

In the past seven days, the HSE has completed over 85,000 Covid-19 tests, but CEO Paul Reid tweeted his followers this morning to remind them that testing doesn’t “provide us with a suit of armour against the virus.”

“Our first line of defence is ourselves and what we do. It’s serious again but we can turn this around too,” he added.

Meanwhile, acting chief medical officer Dr. Ronan Glynn said the cases reported this week were “seeded in the last week,”

“This virus spreads from person to person,” he said. “We now have a collective task across the country to break the chains of transmission and stop this virus from spreading further.

“Plan to see half the number of people this week that you saw last week. When you do meet, do so safely – keep your distance, wear a face covering if appropriate and wash your hands.