*Photograph: John Mangan

Clare’s 14 day incidence rate of COVID-19 remains among the lowest in the country.

On Thursday, NPHET reported that five more persons have tested positive for COVID-19 in Co Clare with its 14 day incidence rate per 100k of the population reported to be the fifth lowest in the Republic of Ireland standing at a figure of 43.8.

Three is the five day moving average of cases in Clare while a total of 52 persons have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in the county over the past fortnight.

Across the country, 393 new cases are known on Thursday with 173 in Dublin, 42 in Cork, 34 in Kildare, 26 in Donegal, 15 in Meath and the remaining 103 cases are spread across 20 other counties.

An additional eight deaths related to COVID-19 have been reported, NPHET confirmed on Thursday. Of the deaths notified today 3 occurred in May, 2 occurred in March and 3 occurred in February or earlier. The median age of those who died was 79 years and the age range was 55 – 97 years. There has been a total of 4,921 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland with two deaths de-notified by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC).

A further drop in the amount of persons hospitalised and in critical care because of the virus has been recorded. As of 8am today, 131 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 36 are in ICU, 16 of the hospitalisations occurred in the past 24 hours.

More than thirty percent of adults have been vaccinated to date. There have been 1,655,866 doses of COVID-19 vaccine administered in Ireland as of Tuesday 4th May with 454,493 people having received both doses.

Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan stated, “It is time to feel hopeful and to start planning our summer. The choices we make now are vital to minimise the incidence of COVID-19 throughout May and June. Prioritise being outside and avoid crowds. Know the symptoms – self-isolate immediately and phone your GP if you have them. By protecting yourself, you are protecting everyone you know from infection”.