There’s no bank holiday from C-19

FRONT-LINE workers across the county have joined forces to appeal to the people of Kerry to stay at home this May bank holiday weekend in order to save lives.

They said the measures taken by the people of Kerry have helped flatten the curve, and while it is difficult, everyone in the county must adhere to the ongoing restrictions to help battle the deadly virus.

There are now a total of 288 confirmed cases in the county. On Monday, Kerry’s number of cases grew by 3.8 per cent – the largest increase in 11 days.

Statistics on Monday also showed there were five cases of COVID-19 in University Hospital Kerry and two suspected cases. Emergency Department Consultant at University Hospital Kerry, Dr Herlo Coetzer, asked everyone to support frontline staff by staying at home.

“We have no option but to travel to work and to keep helping the people who need us. Please do everything you can to support us and stay at home. Right now, the official advice is still the same, so please follow that advice and stay home unless there’s an essential reason to leave. More people seem to be outdoors and interacting with others. While this is completely understandable, it’s so important that we stick with this for a while longer,” he said.

Primary Care Service Manager Cork Kerry Community Health Care Majella Daly asked the people of Kerry to keep up the work which has been successful so far in flattening the curve.

“We know that at this stage it’s getting very hard to stay apart. With a bank holiday weekend coming up, it will be very tempting to think that it’s okay to ‘bend the rules’. Unfortunately, the risk of catching COVID-19 is still high, and we still need everyone’s support. Everything you have done so far has made a huge difference – but it could all be undermined so quickly. Together, we have achieved so much. Now it’s up to each of us to keep that up that work.

The bank holiday weekend isn’t a break from the hard work of dealing with COVID-19, front-line workers in Kerry warned. The message is reiterated by the Gardaí, who warned there will be checkpoints across Kerry, and anyone breaching regulations will be sent home.

Operation Fanacht will see an extensive network of checkpoints, including on rural roads, in the county in a bid to ensure travel restrictions are not breached. The Easter weekend saw an increase in road traffic and authorities are hoping to avoid a repeat.

Cathaoirleach Cllr Niall Kelleher added his voice to the appeal for everyone to stay home, particularly over the coming bank holiday weekend:

“So much has already been achieved in flattening the curve and limiting the spread of the Coronavirus. The sacrifices so far have contributed towards the national effort to stop this dreadful disease. I am appealing to people in Kerry to continue to stay home, particularly over the long weekend. There can be no room for complacency. The short-term pain will be worth the long-term gain,” he said.

Photo by Domnick Walsh Staff from the HSE, An Garda Siochna and Kerry County Council joined together this week for a photo demonstrating that they’re standing together – but still apart – in the county’s battle to keep COVID-19 at bay. Doctors, nurses, mental health services staff, Gardaí and staff from Kerry County Council came together with one main message – asking the people of Kerry to keep up their Trojan efforts.