People travelling to Italy 'should remain abreast' of coronavirus situation

Italian officials have cancelled sporting events, closed schools and businesses and cut short the Venice carnival.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said it was updating its travel advice regularly to reflect developments in the outbreak. Its current travel advice for Italy notes the presence of cases in the country but does not offer any country-specific advice.

Dr Holohan told Newstalk Breakfast that Ireland is well prepared.

“We've been working for a number of weeks now since this began, to put in place the arrangements we have that have helped us to prepare our system to identify cases at an early stage and to enable, were a case to arise and no cases have occurred in this country as yet, measures will be put in place to stop the spread to other people.

“We've been monitoring the situation internationally very closely and we're all aware of the developments that have happened particularly in countries like Italy, Korea and Iran that have been reported over the weekend.

“As part of the international community that we work with on this, specifically the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC), we'll be monitoring and updating the advice and guidance that we give to the health services, with regard to travel advice.

“There is a meeting of the ECDC this afternoon, we anticipate some more specific guidance at European level emanating from that meeting arising from the situation in Italy.”

Dr Holohan said that travel advice is continually updated as information comes to light.

“Anybody who has travelled and is concerned, who experiences symptoms of common cold or flu like symptoms should make contact with their GP by telephone, not to attend, and to be guided from there.

“We have guidance on a continuing basis which is updated as the international situation changes in demand that would help our GPs and front line health professionals to guide people when they make contact.

“We're also saying to people who have queries and concerns that they may make contact the HSE Live which on a continuing basis will provide information - 1850 24 1850.

“An infection like this which is spread by contact from person to person is a difficult thing to fully contain, the measures that the WHO has recommended internationally and that we've been working with has been to attempt to contain this.

“There is still a belief that this may be possible, but what we've seen in Italy over the course of recent days, which is a number of specific locations where cases have arisen in people where there is no documented travel history, that gives us reason to believe that there is community transmission happening in that part of the world and for that reason the ECDC convened an extraordinary meeting this afternoon at which some of these kind of issues are going to be looked at and where I anticipate the public health advice that we'll be giving to people in respect of Italy is likely to change.

“Anybody who is contemplating travel to that part of the world should remain abreast of the situation.”

Meanwhile two Irish citizens have arrived at a quarantine block near Liverpool in England after being evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship moored off Japan.

They were among a group of 32 people – the rest of whom are British nationals – who arrived at the centre on Saturday. Four of the group have tested positive for coronavirus, according to British officials.

Earlier: Ireland and other EU countries told to be on alert for possible coronavirus cases

Ireland and other EU countries have been told to be on alert for possible cases of the coronavirus.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) now rates the risk of the occurrence of cases as moderate to high.

Four people who caught the virus on a cruise ship in Japan were allowed to fly back to the UK, before getting their test results.

The four are being treated at specialist centres in the north of England after testing positive for the illness.

Two Irish people were on that flight but the Department of Health said late last night the there have been no confirmed cases of coronavirus here.

The two Irish citizens, along with 30 British people, arrived at a quarantine block at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside on Saturday.

A statement from the National Public Health Emergency Team said that they have noted that the ECDE " now rates the risk of the occurrence of similar clusters of cases in other EU countries as moderate to high."

The team met last night and the statement said they "will meet again on Tuesday, 25 Feb, to monitor the situation in Europe and globally, and to advance preparedness plans for Ireland."

Yesterday, authorities in Italy scrambled to halt the spread of Europe’s first major outbreak of coronavirus amid rapidly rising numbers of infections and a third death, calling off the popular Venice Carnival and scrapping major league football matches.

Authorities said three people in Venice have tested positive for the viral disease known as Covid-19, all of them in their late 80s and who were taken to hospital in critical condition.

Dr Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer in the Department of Health here, said:

“Ireland has been working on its preparedness for Covid-19 (Coronavirus) since January.

"We remain in a containment phase and, to date, there have been no confirmed cases of Covid-19 here.

“However, clearly the international situation is evolving. We will work with counterparts at the ECDC and WHO over the coming days to fully assess and incorporate the implications of these developments into our approach in Ireland.

“Our public health advice currently remains unchanged - anyone who may have been in contact with a person who has COVID-19, or who has been to mainland China in the last 14 days, is advised to contact HSE Live.

"If they are unwell with cough, especially with respiratory symptoms (e.g. cough, high temperature, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, fever) they should isolate themselves and phone their GP immediately."

More than 2,500 people have died following the coronavirus outbreak in China, authorities have said.

Health officials said 150 new deaths and 409 new cases were recorded on Sunday.

The number of deaths in mainland China stands at 2,592, while 77,345 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in the country.

The Department of Health has advised the public to wash their hand "properly and regularly" and to cover their "mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough and sneeze".

It can take up to 14 days for symptoms of coronavirus to show.

They said symptoms may include:

• a cough
• shortness of breath
• breathing difficulties
• fever (high temperature)

- additional reporting by Press Association