A second person has died, and 39 more cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed by the Department of Health.

This brings the total number of cases in the Republic to 129, and the total number of deaths to two.

Among the 39 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus:

- 29 are male

- 10 are female

The geographical breakdown is:

- 21 in the east of the country

- 13 associated with the south

- 3 in the north west

- 2 in the west

Among these new cases, some are healthcare staff.

Out of the 3 cases in the northwest 1 of them is believed to be in Co.Donegal.

The United States' travel ban for Ireland and the UK will come into effect at midnight on Monday night (Eastern Standard Time), according to Vice President Mike Pence.

US citizens and residents will be allowed to return to the country, he said. But Irish or UK citizens will not be able to enter the United States for the duration of the ban.

The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in Lombardy, the Italian region that has been worst affected by the crisis, rose to 966 today, an increase of 76 from the previous day, Giulio Gallera, the region's senior health official said.

The number of new cases rose by 1,865 to 11,685.

The latest national death toll is due to be released later in the day. Yesterday, the Italy-wide tally stood at 1,266.

The Department of Foreign Affairs is now "advising against non-essential travel to the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Malta, Poland, and Slovakia".

It said it would also shortly be providing additional guidance on Spain, "which remains at non-essential travel, while Italy remains at no travel".

Many countries imposing travel restrictions due to #COVID19 Irish citizens should now exercise a high degree of caution when making travel plans.@dfatirl now advising against non-essential travel to Czech, Cyprus, Denmark, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Spain & No travel to Italy. pic.twitter.com/mGTdFjJint
— Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) March 14, 2020

Personal hygiene, proper protection

Dr Michael Chi Wai Chan, an infectious disease expert at the University of Hong Kong, noted while the viral activity "is a little bit lower in relatively warmer temperatures" such as Indonesia, the Philippines, or even India, "it won't really affect" the transmission of the virus per se, which is spreading in the air.

According to the latest reports on Wednesday, there were 26 cases confirmed in Indonesia with one death; 49 in the Philippines, also with one death; and 44 cases in India with no deaths and no local transmission so far.

No matter what the temperature is, Chan said, what is more important is that individuals observe personal hygiene and proper protection, "which is really affecting the outcome" of the infection.

Five new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in Northern Ireland, bringing the total number of cases there to 34.

The HSE has said that GP out of hours services, HSELive and emergency numbers 112 and 999 have been receiving a very high number of calls today from people seeking access to testing for Covid-19.

The HSE said it was working to have "new electronic processes" in operation from Monday to deal with the increased demand in testing.

In a statement, it said: "While GPs have had access for some time to testing through the National Ambulance Service, given the increased requirement for testing, the HSE is working to have new electronic processes operational from Monday, March 16 next to allow General Practitioners more easily order testing for patients where clinically indicated."

It said members of the public who have normal cold- and flu-like symptoms or who believe they may have been in contact with Covid-19 are being asked to self-isolate and to ring their GP on Monday, who will then be in a position to triage patients appropriately and order a test where needed.

The HSE said it is working this weekend to ensure that sufficient testing facilities are in place by then to meet the demand.

"GPs out of hours services are not in a position to order testing for patients with normal cold and flu like symptoms."

The HSE's information line is also similarly not in a position to order testing for members of the public, it said.

The public are being asked to only use 112 or 999 for medical emergencies at all times.

"While we appreciate people's concern about Covid-19, we would ask for their patience as we respond to the increasing requirement for testing," said Dr Colm Henry, Chief Clinical Officer of the HSE.