To help keep each other safe, people are asked to maintain a physical distance during the pandemic.
Health experts are advising people to practise social distancing to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. This means staying at least one metre away from other people. The advice is not to shake hands or engage in any other unnecessary close contact.
We must now keep at least one metre but ideally two metres away from other people.
While restaurants, cafés and bars are allowed to remain open, there should be one metre between tables and a maximum of 100 people in indoor settings.
Parents are being advised to avoid setting up play dates for children. While children have been the least affected by the virus to date, it is believed that they may be carriers. Outdoor activities in small groups are encouraged.
The Health Service Executive (HSE) advises that grandparents should keep their distance from grandchildren. Visits must be short and socially distant.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 13 March 2020. The reporter is Laura Fletcher.
