A further 33 people with COVID-19 have died in the Republic. The total number of COVID-19-related deaths here is now 320.

Nineteen males and 14 females died and altogether, 25 had underlying health conditions. Thirty of these deaths occurred in the east of the country and three in the west.

An additional 553 new cases of the virus have also been reported by Irish laboratories, along with an additional 286 cases reported by a laboratory in Germany, bringing the total number of cases here to 8,928.

"Today's figure of 553 represents the largest number of new cases reported in a single day since the start of the outbreak.

"This should remind everyone of the importance of hand hygiene, respiratory etiquette and physical distancing. These are the actions to suppress this infection. We need to continue with them," commented the Department of Health's chief medical officer, Dr Tony Holohan.

Meanwhile, data from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre shows that of the 7,787 cases reported to it as of midnight, April 9, there were 356 clusters involving 1,626 cases.

A total of 1,718 people had been hospitalised and of these, 253 had been admitted to ICU.

Some 2,141 cases were associated with healthcare workers.

COVID-19 is spread through close contact with an infected person's body fluids (e.g. droplets from coughing or sneezing), or by touching surfaces that an infected person has coughed or sneezed on. It can take up to 14 days for symptoms of the virus to show. These may include a fever, a persistent cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.

COVID-19 can also cause more severe illnesses, including pneumonia and severe breathing difficulties. Some 80% of cases will be mild to moderate, 14% will be more severe, while 6% will be critical.

Restrictions in relation to COVID-19 are now in place until May 5. As part of these restrictions, everybody is being asked to stay at home, except in specific circumstances. These include:
-Travelling to and from work in circumstances where the work is an essential health, social care or other essential service that cannot be done from home
-To shop for essential food and household goods
-To attend medical appointments
-For vital family reasons, such as caring for children or elderly people
-To take brief individual exercise within your locality, which may include children from your household, however this should be within 2km of your home.

All public and private gatherings of any number of people outside a single household or living unit are prohibited.

Those over the age of 70 and medically vulnerable people are also being cocooned. For more information on this, click here.

ALONE, the organisation that supports older people to age at home, is running a national support line for older people facing difficulties due to COVID-19. The support line is open every day from 8am to 8pm, call 0818 222 024.

For more information on COVID-19, click here.