Health experts have warned 3,000 people could die from coronavirus in Northern Ireland in less than five months.
The North's Department of Health said that is the worst-case scenario for the weeks ahead.
The number of confirmed cases in Northern Ireland rose by 103 yesterday - and 689 people now have the virus.
First Minister of Northern Ireland Arlene Foster said the department's new forecast on the number of deaths is "sobering".
"The loss of each of those lives is a huge blow," the DUP leader said. "Not only to their families but of course to the communities from which they come from."
"In a small tight-knit society like ours, we are all likely to know someone who will be impacted," she said.
"It will be a cruel blow and we will need to do everything can to comfort and support their relatives and indeed each other," she said.
