There’s been another worrying surge in Covid-19 cases.

Health officials have confirmed that 3,726 new cases have been confirmed in Ireland in the past 24 hours, with 493 Covid-19 patients currently hospitalised, 90 of whom are in intensive care units.

The 14-day incidence stands at 695 per 100,000, an increase of 18% on last week.

Addressing the increase in cases, Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health said that, while the disease is circulating widely within our communities, “we have the tools to limit its spread”.

“We know that vaccination is very successful at preventing severe illness and hospitalisation and I urge anyone who still needs to get their Covid vaccine to do so,” said Dr Holohan.

“We also know that, even when vaccinated, we still need to practice basic public health interventions – washing our hands, opening windows, wearing masks and most importantly, staying home when we have symptoms. These simple measures are very successful at breaking the chains of transmission of this disease.

“As we practice all elements of the public health advice, we keep ourselves, and our communities, safe.”