COVID-19 UPDATE: Number of deaths increases by 22 as toll passes the 100-mark

The death toll in the Republic of Ireland from Covid-19 has risen by 22 to 120 while the number of new cases has increased by 424.

This brings the total of confirmed cases to 5,177  on the island as a whole while the total number of deaths has reached 168 after another 12 people lost their lives in the North today.

Of the 120 deaths in the Republic, 96 of these people were reported as having an underlying health condition, the Department of Health said this evening at its press briefing.

Meanwhile, medical staff  have said that some of the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), which was sent out to Covid-19 test centres, mobile ambulance units and hospitals, this week  is “not fit for purpose” and “unusable”.

RTÉ News reported that some of the new equipment included protective gowns that are three-quarter length on the arm and are unusable to staff.