The first case of coronavirus has been confirmed in Northern Ireland.
Health officials say a person who travelled from Italy via Dublin is being treated at a specialist unit.
The HSE has said it will be in direct contact with anybody who was sitting within two rows of the infected individual on board the flight from Italy.
Northern Italy is one of the regions worst impacted by the virus, with 650 cases confirmed.
Today's announcement represents the first confirmed case on the island of Ireland.
There have been dozens of suspected cases in both the Republic and the North, but none were confirmed until this evening's announcement by Northern Ireland's Public Health Agency.
Officials in the North have not disclosed any information about the individual, saying their confidentiality is important.
They did confirm that it was an adult who had not been on a school trip, noting that the individual followed the recommended guidance when contacting their doctor.
Dr Michael McBride, chief medical officer for Northern Ireland, said it is a development that the authorities expected.
Chief medical officer Dr Michael McBride speaking at a press conference in Belfast after the first case of Covid-19 has been identified in Northern Ireland. Picture by: Michael McHugh/PA Wire/PA ImagesSpeaking in Belfast, he said: "We've said repeatedly, and as the minister has said repeatedly, it wasn't a question of if but when we would have a case in Northern Ireland.
"We have now seen our first case in Northern Ireland from someone returning from Northern Italy - that is not unexpected."
He stressed that people who've only had passing contact with the individual are not at high risk, and that they're now working to find anyone who is at higher risk after being in close proximity with the person for longer than 15 minutes.
Authorities in the North have said they are working closely with the health service here in the Republic as they respond to the global outbreak of the virus.
Meanwhile, the Health Minister here says the case in the North was not unexpected.
Simon Harris said the National Public Health Emergency Team had been planning for this scenario since January.
The HSE is working to inform any people the patient in the North had contact with, in a bid to prevent any further transmission.
Dr Tony Holohan, chief medical officer in the Department of Health, said: “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.
“Close contact involves either face to face contact or spending more than 15 minutes within 2 metres of an infected person. The risk of transmission through casual contact is low.”
