Ten more people died from the coronavirus in Ireland on Thursday.
The patients are three women and seven men - nine patients are in the east of the country and one is in the south.
The median age of the patients diagnosed with COVID-19 who have died is 79 years - 68% are men and 32% are women.
There have now been 19 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland - this is up from just nine on Wednesday.
The Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) has also been informed of 255 new confirmed cases of the virus.
There are now 1,819 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.
The HSE says it is now working to identify any contacts the patients may have had to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.
Data from HPSC as of midnight on Tuesday shows:
- 55% are male and 45% are female, with 66 clusters involving 295 cases
- The median age of confirmed cases is 46 years
- 340 cases (25%) have been hospitalised
- Of those hospitalised, 47 cases have been admitted to ICU
- 321 cases (23%) are associated with healthcare workers
- Dublin has the highest number of cases at 774 (56% of all cases), followed by Cork with 154 cases (11%)
Of those for whom transmission status is known community transmission accounts for 51%, close contact accounts for 22% and travel abroad accounts for 27%.
BREAKING: Ten more patients have sadly died here from #Covid19, bringing the death toll to 19. There are a further 255 confirmed cases today. https://t.co/3fBC8RqQLz
— Newstalk (@NewstalkFM) March 26, 2020
Dr Tony Holohan, chief medical officer at the Department of Health, said: “We are only at the beginning of the curve.
"We need every citizen to heed the advice and measures put in place to protect all of us."
Dr Colm Henry, HSE chief clinical officer, added: "While the HSE is engaged in extensive preparations for COVID-19, the more we as individuals take personal responsibility to interrupt the spread of the virus, the greater impact we can have on protecting our vulnerable people and saving lives."
Earlier the Dáil stopped work briefly at 8.00pm to applaud all the country's healthcare workers.
They are sitting in reduced numbers in a bid to pass emergency measures in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
However, they paused the debate to applaud the frontline workers leading Ireland's response to the outbreak.
Meanwhile three COVID-19 patients have died in the North, bringing the total there to 10.
The UK total of coronavirus deaths has hit 584 - after more deaths in Scotland and Wales.
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced three deaths in Scotland.
Public Health Wales said another six people had died and a further 113 people had been diagnosed with the disease.
The number of people who have tested positive for coronavirus in the UK now stands at 11,658.
Research conducted on behalf of the Department of Health here shows that while 35% of people are worried about their personal health, 77% of people are worried about the health of their family and friends.
The nationally representative online survey of 1,270 adults conducted on Thursday, which is conducted twice weekly, reveals:
- 66% of people say they are coughing into their elbow
- 81% say they are physical distancing when they are in a queue
- 65% of people are worried about the economy
- 32% of people are worried about their employment status
