200 new cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the Republic.
It's the highest number of new cases reported in a day since the beginning of May, and brings the total number of cases to date to 27,191.
However there have been no further deaths reported.
81 of the new cases are in Kildare, 56 in Dublin, 13 in Tipperary, eight in Limerick.
Additionally six are in each of Laois and Galway, five in each of Kilkenny and Meath.
But the remaining 20 cases are in Carlow, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Louth, Mayo, Offaly, Roscommon, Waterford, Wicklow.
We have a high number of confirmed cases today. This virus is still with us. A number of our EU neighbours are also experiencing an uptick in cases. The virus capitalises on complacency. Please redouble your efforts on hand washing, physical distancing and reduce your contacts.
— Stephen Donnelly (@DonnellyStephen) August 15, 2020
68 Cases of Covid-19 Linked To Known Outbreaks
68 of the new confirmed cases are associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of a confirmed case.
While 25 cases have been identified as community transmission
Dr Ronan Glynn, Acting Chief Medical Officer, said:
“This is the largest number of cases in a single day since the beginning of May.
"We now have multiple clusters with secondary spread of disease and rising numbers of cases in many parts of the country."
"This is deeply concerning."
"NPHET will monitor this extremely closely over the coming days."
Limit Contacts, Keep Your Distance, Take Extra Care:
Dr. Glynn continued:
“This virus is still out there and has not gone away."
"COVID-19 seeks to capitalise on complacency and is just waiting for the opportunity to spread."
"I am asking everyone, especially those who are over 70 or medically vulnerable, to limit your contacts, keep your distance from other people and take extra care to heed public health advice."
As of this morning, there were 15 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Irish hospitals and eight cases in intensive care.
