Killer virus in Ireland within days
Harris says outbreak risk rising as six italian deaths confirmed
IRELAND’S first coronavirus case could arrive within days, the Government warned yesterday.
Covid-19 has spread with deadly and alarming speed in Italy.
Seven deaths have been confirmed – three yesterday.
Authorities believe it is a case of when, not if, the contagion spreads here.
Health Minister Simon Harris said the chances of an Irish outbreak have “significantly increased”.
He added: “There could well be a case in Ireland in the coming days and weeks.”
Stock markets plunged with European traders suffering their biggest drop since the Brexit vote. The US Dow Jones dropped 1,000 points and the price of gold soared.
Meanwhile, an intensive care consultant yesterday warned there are not enough ICU beds in Irish hospitals in the event of an outbreak here.
Tom Ryan of St James’s Hospital in Dublin said it was recognised 10 years ago the number of ICU beds should have been doubled. He told RTE: “We have only half the beds needed, but no action was taken.
“The current ICU stock is outdated and there are poor isolation facilities. Even if there was a small number of cases, that would present a challenge as there is no capacity in the system.”
Italy play Ireland in Six Nations rugby in Dublin in two weeks.
Hundreds of fans are due to travel from Northern Italy’s rugby heartland, the area worst affected by coronavirus
The IRFU told the Irish Mirror yesterday: “The Ireland v Italy fixtures scheduled for the weekend of 6th (U20s) , 7th (Men) and 8th (Women) of March remain as scheduled. The IRFU will follow Government advice on such fixtures.” But Mr Harris indicated the decision could be taken out of their hands.
He said: “There will be some big decisions that have to be made in the coming days including mass gatherings.
“Most particularly, I’m thinking of the Ireland-italy rugby game that’s due to take place in the not-too distant future.”
Irish citizens have been advised by the Department of Foreign Affairs not to travel to affected areas of Italy. More
than 50,000 are quarantined-mostly in the Lombardy and Veneto regions.
Ryanair declined to say if passengers have already cancelled trips. A spokesperson told the Irish Mirror: “At present all flights are operating as normal. We will follow all public health instructions that are issued.”
The Ulster PRO14 rugby match against Benetton in Treviso on Saturday has already been postponed.
Benetton’s Stadio Monigo is less than 20 miles from Venice in the heart of Veneto – one of the regions under strict quarantine.
Meanwhile, Irish businesses are already preparing for shortages as the supply chain from China becomes frayed.
The owners of Penneys warned there is a risk of supply shortages later in the year if factory delays are prolonged.
Imports from China to Ireland were worth €5.7billion in 2018 including machinery, electronics, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, clothing, toys and household goods.
Italian authorities believe they have now tracked down a 38-year-old man who unwittingly brought the virus to Lombardy. They are now trying to reconstruct the movements of the man now referred to as “patient one”.
There will have to be some big decisions that have to be made
HEALTH MINISTER SIMON HARRIS YESTERDAY