Ireland goes into Lockdown as new restrictions announced
From midnight tonight, and for two week period until Easter Sunday everybody must stay at home except in specific circumstances.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar made the announcement at a news briefing of government buildings this evening.
The latest restrictions mean that people will only be allowed to leave their home for essential work to buy food, attend medical appointments,for vital family reasons, or to take exercise within two kilometers of your home.
302 new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed by the Department of Health, and there have been three new deaths, including the death of a health care worker, bringing the total to 2,121 cases. There were also three deaths in Northern Ireland, bringing the total number of deaths on the island to 35. There were 27 reported cases of Covid-19 in Meath.
Taoiseach Leo Vardakar said: "With effect from midnight night tonight for a two week period until Easter Sunday, April 12 everybody must stay at home, in all circumstances, except for the following situations to travel to and from work for the purposes of work only where the work is an essential health, social care or other essential service that cannot be done from home. A list of these will be provided. (That list will be available tomorrow morning.)
We’re to stay at home in all circumstances, except in the following situations:
- To travel to and from work in circumstances where the work is in an essential health, social care and other essential service and the work cannot be done from home
- To shop for essential food and household goods
- To attend medical appointments and collect medicines and other health products
- For vital family reasons, such as providing care to children, elderly or vulnerable people, but excluding social family visits
- To take brief individual physical exercise within your locality, which may include children from the household (e.g for a run or walk with/without dog) within 2km of the home (i.e within half an hour from the home) adhering to strict 2 metre social distancing measures
For farming purposes – i.e. food production and/or care of animals
- Shielding, our cocooning will be introduced for all of those over 70 years of age, unspecified categories of people who are extremely vulnerable to Covid-19 detailed guidance will be available.
The decision has been taken on foot the latest advice from the National Public Health Emergency team.
Dr Tony Holohan said: We're concerned as I shared with you yesterday evening, but some other measures in relation to the disease, particularly in the context of admissions to intensive care as the Taoiseach identified those who continue to increase day on day, and why we think we're still at an early point in the course of this disease. We think now is the time for us to move to strengthen the measures further to try to spend two weeks to really suppress the transmission is as far as as much as possible in the community.
More to follow...