Covid claims 24 Galway lives in a week

Another 24 people died in Galway from Covid-19 in one week – as the post-Christmas and New Year wave of cases continues to take its toll.

And as the city’s two third-level colleges grapple with Covid outbreaks affecting as many as 200 people, a warning about the consequences of ‘reckless behaviour’ has been issued to students.

At the same time, the economic impact of lockdown restrictions continue to hurt with over 25,000 in Galway out of work and on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment as a direct result of Covid.

Two dozen more Covid deaths were registered in Galway in the week to February 5, bringing the local death toll to 89, according to the most up-to-date Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures.

Twenty of these deaths occurred last year, 45 were in January and 24 were recorded in the first week of February. Mayo’s death toll rose 17 to 125, and there were six more deaths in Roscommon bringing the total there to 39.

The latest deaths have been announced by CSO in the same week as outbreaks of Covid-19 were declared at Galway’s two third level institutes.

The National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) said 200 students in Galway were tested for Covid-19 who were confirmed or suspected of having contracted the virus.

As of Monday, there were 135 confirmed cases linked to students.

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