Discussion regarding the large gatherings which occurred in Dublin’s city centre on Saturday continues…
Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Tony Holohan has described the large gatherings which occurred in Dublin’s city centre on Saturday as looking like “Jones’ Road on a day of an All-Ireland.”
The CMO tweeted previously that he was “absolutely shocked” at what he described as a “major open-air party” in the South William Street area at around 8.15pm on Saturday evening.
Dr Holohan said he saw “enormous crowds” while driving past the city centre and that the scenes were “what we do not need when we have made so much progress”.
On Saturday night, the CMO wrote: “Drove into Dublin City Centre to collect someone from work at 8.15pm. Absolutely shocked at scenes in South Great George’s St, Exchequer St, South William St area.
“Enormous crowds – like a major open-air party. This is what we do not need when we have made so much progress.”
During Wednesday afternoon’s Department of Health’s briefing, the CMO spoke more about the Saturday evening scenes.
He said: “It really was something to behold. We could have easily anticipated there would be crowds and people would be tempted out by the good weather and the opportunity, that’s kind of understandable.
“Simply, the scale of it… I drove through the junction looking up South William Street and it looked like Jones’ Road on a day of an All-Ireland – that’s what it looked like.
“So, it’s not at all that we’re surprised that we see some level of non-compliance, but the scale of that… I think if the council [Dublin City Council] had set about organising an outdoor event, they couldn’t have squeezed more people into that confined arena and that was the concern.”
He added: “The amount of social distancing that could be practised with those kinds of crowds would be minimal… If outdoor transmission is to take place, that’s the kind of environment in which it would happen.”
The CMO said that by tweeting not Saturday, he was not making a “moral judgement”.
He explained: “We have to make judgements in relation to the science and the evidence about what controls and dictates and shapes and facilitates transmission of the disease and that’s what we’re responding to.
“If the public gets ahead in terms of anticipatory behaviour… and starts to engage in activity that’s going to facilitate transmission, it does put at risk the progress that we’re making collectively as a country.”
Dr Holohan said data is showing that the majority of people are following public health guidelines but added that NPHET has to express their concerns regarding compliance, particularly given the Delta variant and the level of vaccination in the population.
In a letter sent to government last week, but published only on Tuesday, meanwhile, Holohan warned of the need for unvaccinated people to limit their interactions, particularly in indoor settings, and added that the planned easing of restrictions in June remains “low to medium risk”.
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