A leading advisor on Covid-19 has said social gatherings in crowded and indoor spaces are to blame for the recent increase in confirmed cases in the Republic.
The State recorded its highest number of cases of Covid-19 in over a month last night, with 34 new cases.
Dr Nuala O'Connor, the Irish College of General Practitioners' lead advisor on Covid-19, says the recent positive tests come from two main groups:
“Really it’s social gatherings where people got together indoors – house parties, restaurants, maybe somebody went out with mild symptoms and didn’t realise, or indeed sometimes people have no symptoms and they actually have Covid, and that can easily be passed on.”
“The second one obviously has been, some of the cases have been related to inward travel into the country.”
She says there's a clear reason for the recent spike in cases.
“We all maybe let our guard down a little and we just need to be careful to get back. It’s really important in particular we have to avoid crowded, indoor, poorly ventilated spaces where we can’t maintain that all important two metre distancing.”
Dr Martin Daly, a former president of the Irish Medical Organisation, described last night's figures as a big concern.
