Ireland logged 5,883 new cases of Covid-19 on Friday as a second surge driven by a sub-variant of Omicron appeared to slow.
At the height of the latest wave in March it is believed that the country was likely seeing “several hundred thousand” new cases each week, with just a fraction officially recorded amid the rolling back of the test and trace system.
2,845 new cases were confirmed by PCR test on Friday, while a further 3,038 people registered a positive antigen test through the HSE portal.
Pressure is continuing on hospitals, with 1,182 Covid-19 patients hospitalised as of this morning, including 58 in ICU.
Separate from those with the virus, there were a further 447 people waiting for a hospital bed this morning, according to figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO).
360 people were waiting in emergency departments, with another 87 in wards elsewhere and 10 people waiting in children's hospitals.
University Hospital Limerick had the largest number of patients on seats or trolleys, with 91 waiting for a bed.
