DUBLIN (Reuters) – Ireland said on Friday it had reported thousands of cases of coronavirus in recent days by thousands more than previously known as its system was under stress, suggesting the EU’s fastest-growing outbreak worsens even faster of what the figures showed.
More than 9,000 people who tested positive for COVID-19 have not yet been added to the official count of confirmed cases, the national public health emergency team said. A day earlier he had estimated that the number of positive tests pending registration was still 4,000.
Ireland has gone from having the lowest infection rate in the European Union just two weeks ago to having the fastest rate of deterioration, after allowing the reopening of shops and large parts of the hospitality sector during the largest part of December.
A large volume of positive tests since Christmas has caused a delay in positive buffers to be formally confirmed as new individual cases. Ireland reported on Friday a daily record of 1,754 confirmed cases on Friday, surpassing 1,500 cases per day for the fourth day in a row.
Padraic Halpin Reports; Edited by Peter Graff