Mayor urges people to show their 'Limerick spirit' in fight against Covid surge
THE Mayor of the City and County of Limerick has called on the people of Limerick to once again show their true Limerick spirit to help reduce the rates of Covid-19 locally.
Cllr Michael Collins was speaking last night following a meeting with Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly which was attended by Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Dr Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer and Dr Mai Mannix, Director of Public Health Mid-West, along with other public representatives.
“The people of Limerick have shown true spirit and resilience over the past 12 months or so, but the message from the Minister and the Chief Medical Officer was stark. We cannot be complacent. We all need to make some simple changes in relation to adherence to the health guidelines to help stop the rise in cases," said Cllr Collins.
Yesterday's meeting was arranged in response to the steep rise in positive Covid-19 rates over the past few weeks. Provisional data shows that since May 16, there have been 970 cases in Limerick meaning the incidence rate is currently abpve 425 (per 100,000 population) - more than two and a half times the next highest county in the country.
According to Public Health Mid West, 75 new cases were reported on Thursday - down from 103 on Wednesday.
A number of measures are to be undertaken as a result of yesterday's meeting but currently there are no plans for a local lockdown or to delay the reopening of the hospitality sector on Monday.
An analysis of the recent cases shows there have been outbreaks across the city and county with indoor social gatherings driving the majority of them.
More than 100 cases in 40 workplaces are currently under investigation, while there have also been school outbreaks driven by activities outside of school settings.
Cllr Collins has appealed to the people of Limerick to listen to the public health advice and to minimise their social contacts - particularly indoors.
“I’m confident that everyone will step up to the plate and follow the health guidelines and we can help stem the tide. The time for action is now. The situation where we find ourselves in, just indicates that regardless of vaccines, Covid is still very much in our community, and while we might not be infected ourselves, our actions could result in our friends and family not being so lucky. We must protect our loved ones," he said.
The majority of the recent cases have been detected in people who are in the unvaccinated age groups, right across the ages from young children, right the way up to people close to 50.
They key messages are for people to avoid crowds, wear a face covering, wash your hands, maintain your social distance and to socialise outdoors.
Following the meeting with the Minister, Mayor Collins chaired a special briefing for Councillors where he outlined out the stark message given by the Minister and HSE teams and how the good work done by the people of Limerick could be undone very quickly if we don’t follow the simple rules.
These key messages were endorsed unanimously by the councillors who all urged that each one of us to take responsibility for our own actions and follow the health guidelines.
There will be an increased Garda visibility in Limerick over the weekend and an appeal is being made to landlords, especially in the Castletroy area, to be more aware of their tenants with regards the current public health guidelines.