DUBLIN (Reuters) – Ireland said on Friday that it had underreported cases of coronavirus in the past few days in thousands more than previously known, as its system was under pressure, suggesting that the fastest growing spurt in the EU is getting worse even faster than the numbers show.
More than 9,000 people tested positive for COVID-19 have not yet been included in the official confirmed case count, the National Public Health Emergency Team said. A day earlier, he estimated the number of positive tests still pending registration at just 4,000.
Ireland went from the lowest infection rate in the European Union just two weeks ago to the fastest deterioration rate, after shops and large parts of the hospitality sector were able to reopen in most of December.
A large volume of positive tests since Christmas has led to a delay in the formal confirmation of positive swabs as new individual cases. Ireland formally reported a daily record of 1,754 confirmed cases on Friday, exceeding 1,500 daily cases for the fourth consecutive day.
Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Peter Graff’s Edition