Kenneth Fox
Donegal is the county with the highest 14 day incidence rate per 100,000 with a rate of 457.3, according to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC).
From December 15th up until midnight on December 28th, the county recorded a total of 728 new cases of Covid-19.
The county with the second highest rate is Monaghan which has a rate of 454.5, followed by Louth which has a rate of 395,7. Monaghan recorded 279 new cases of the virus during this period and Louth recorded 510 new cases.
Overall, Ireland recorded 11,697 new cases of Covid-19 over this two-week period and the current incidence rate of the country is now at 245.64.
In terms of the number of people hospitalised during this 14-day period there were 402. A further 10 people were admitted to ICU during this period.
A total of 1,326 cases were associated with clusters and 692 healthcare workers contracted the virus.
The HPSC also confirmed that 3,413 cases were from a close contact with a known confirmed case. Meanwhile, 1,890 cases were associated with community transmission and 121 cases were travel related.
Regarding the age breakdown of cases during this period, the median age was 35 years of age.
In terms of the age group which accounted for the most cases, 25-34 year olds accounted for the most with 2,245 new cases. This was followed by 35-44 year olds who accounted for 1,857 cases.
Those aged 75 to 84 years of age accounted for the most hospitalisations during this period with 84 people being admitted to hospital.
Outbreak data
The HPSC also recently released data surrounding outbreaks and clusters for the week up to December 26th.
Private homes once again accounted for the highest number of outbreaks during this period with 110.
Schools accounted for 21 outbreaks of the virus in the past week, which means an outbreak occurred from a pupil or staff member testing positive and not necessarily from within a school.
There were 10 outbreaks of Covid-19 in hospitals and 13 outbreaks in nursing homes during the same period.
In terms of outbreaks in vulnerable communities, the HPSC said there were two outbreaks in the Irish Traveller community and one in a Direct Provision Centre.
