An Irish language college in the Donegal Gaeltacht has closed temporarily because of an outbreak of swine flu among students.
Six students were sent home yesterday and a further five cases have been confirmed today.
Just under 300 students were on the course at Coláiste Mhuire, Loch an Iúir, which is between Gaoth Dobhair and Dungloe, in northwest Donegal.
25 houses in the Gaeltacht village are housing the students, who are aged between 14 and 17 and from various parts of Northern Ireland.
According to college authorities, the six students who were initially sent home fell ill on Thursday.
More than 140 students have been seen by a local GP in the past 48 hours.
As a result, the decision was taken this afternoon to send all students home.
College authorities had earlier been told it would be fine to carry on with the course until 20 August, but in light of new confirmed cases they have to close the college for seven days.
A statement from the college confirmed that the course will resume on Saturday 15 August.
HSE officials distributed Tamiflu to students and teachers this afternoon.
Elsewhere, the management at Dublin's Tallaght Hospital have said all necessary measures are in place to protect patients and staff following the death there yesterday of a young woman from swine flu.
The woman was the first person to die from the virus in Ireland.
Fitzgerald quarantined in France
Former Taoiseach Garrett Fitzgerald is among about 20 Irish people who have been quarantined at a French chateau over fears of a swine flu outbreak.
A village doctor in the central Auvergne region recommended the precautionary measure after a young couple from the chateau came to him complaining of flu-like symptoms.
'The state of health of the persons concerned are no cause for concern, and only one elderly, fragile person was issued with Tamiflu by precaution,' said Jean-Pierre Maurice, the deputy prefect for the Vichy district.
The results of tests to see if this was indeed an outbreak of the A(H1N1) virus will be known on Monday.
'It was a big drama this morning, but in the end, it's nothing much,' Mary Fitzgerald, the politician's daughter, said.
'We understand that there are precautions, procedures to respect at this time and we must not get upset over nothing,' she added.
Irish student in isolation at French camp
An Irish and British student have been placed in isolation after displaying swine flu-like symptoms at a French language camp, a medical inspector said.
At least eight teenagers at the camp in Cap d'Ail, near Nice have tested positive for the virus.
The British and Irish youngsters were among 58 adolescents forced into isolation today at the camp after showing symptoms similar to swine flu.
Dr Thierry Mathieu, medical inspector at the regional health and social department, said: 'It is likely that these students have been infected with the virus.'
