Workers wearing protective gear spray disinfectant as a precaution against the new coronavirus at a department store in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 2, 2020. South Korea has the world's second-highest cases. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) © ASSOCIATED PRESS Workers wearing protective gear spray disinfectant as a precaution against the new coronavirus at a department store in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 2, 2020. South Korea has the world's second-highest cases. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Hundreds of pupils in a Dublin secondary school have been told to stay at home for two weeks after a student tested positive for the new coronavirus.

Parents were thrown into panic yesterday after receiving a letter from the HSE saying the school had been shut with pupils and staff put under active surveillance by public health doctors until March 16.

A thermal camera monitor shows the body temperature of people at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 2, 2020. South Korea has the world's second-highest cases of the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) © ASSOCIATED PRESS A thermal camera monitor shows the body temperature of people at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 2, 2020. South Korea has the world's second-highest cases of the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) The student, the first person in the Republic to be diagnosed with the virus sweeping the globe, was being cared for in the isolation unit of the Mater Hospital in Dublin last night.

Gallery: How the coronavirus is being handled globally (Photo Services)

He caught the virus during a mid-term visit to one of the areas of northern Italy which has had the biggest infection outbreak in Europe.

Medics prepare to transfer a patient on a stretcher to an ambulance at the Life Care Center of Kirkland, the long-term care facility linked to the two of three confirmed coronavirus cases in the state, in Kirkland, Washington, U.S. March 1, 2020. REUTERS/David Ryder © Thomson Reuters Medics prepare to transfer a patient on a stretcher to an ambulance at the Life Care Center of Kirkland, the long-term care facility linked to the two of three confirmed coronavirus cases in the state, in Kirkland, Washington, U.S. March 1, 2020. REUTERS/David Ryder The staff and students in the 400-pupil school have been told to restrict their movements and isolate themselves for the next 14 days. Parents got letters from the HSE yesterday informing them "a person" in the school had been identified as having the virus and that it would be closed for two weeks "as a precaution".

(left to right) HSE National Director, Acute Operations Liam Woods, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health Dr Tony Holohan, and Director, National Virus Reference Laboratory Dr Cillian De Gascun, during a press conference at the Department of Health, Dublin where they gave an update on on Ireland's preparedness for Covid-19. (Photo by Brian Lawless/PA Images via Getty Images) © PA Wire/PA Images (left to right) HSE National Director, Acute Operations Liam Woods, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health Dr Tony Holohan, and Director, National Virus Reference Laboratory Dr Cillian De Gascun, during a press conference at the Department of Health, Dublin where they gave an update on on Ireland's preparedness for Covid-19. (Photo by Brian Lawless/PA Images via Getty Images) The letter provided information on how to reduce the risk of transmission but did not state it was a pupil who had the virus. Parents will get daily text messages from public health doctors and have been told to report any potential symptoms.

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The decision by the Department of Health not to reveal the name of the school was criticised on social media last night. Some public representatives named the school on Twitter.

Chief medical officer Dr Tony Holohan said the school would not be named for reasons of patient confidentiality and the need to reassure other people who may have the infection that they can come forward without a breach of privacy.

Dr John Cuddihy, HSE director of public health (left), and Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan during a press conference at Department of Health in Dublin after the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in the Irish Republic. (Photo by Niall Carson/PA Images via Getty Images) © PA Wire/PA Images Dr John Cuddihy, HSE director of public health (left), and Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan during a press conference at Department of Health in Dublin after the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in the Irish Republic. (Photo by Niall Carson/PA Images via Getty Images) It is understood Education Minister Joe McHugh has contacted the school principal and assured her support would be made available.

It is the second case on the island of Ireland in the space of a few days and follows news that a woman in Northern Ireland also has the virus following a trip to northern Italy.

South Korean soldiers wearing protective gear sanitize a street in front of the city hall after the rapid rise in confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus disease of (COVID-19) in Daegu, southeast of the capital Seoul, South Korea, March 2, 2020.  REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon © Thomson Reuters South Korean soldiers wearing protective gear sanitize a street in front of the city hall after the rapid rise in confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus disease of (COVID-19) in Daegu, southeast of the capital Seoul, South Korea, March 2, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon It is the second case on the island of Ireland in the space of a few days and follows news that a woman in Northern Ireland also has the virus following a trip to northern Italy.

She returned to Ireland via Dublin airport and travelled on to Belfast by train.

Dr John Cuddihy, head of the Health Protection Surveillance Centre, said yesterday that not all of the contacts of the person who tested positive from the Dublin school had yet been traced and this work was ongoing.

South Korean soldiers wearing protective gear sanitize a street in front of the city hall after the rapid rise in confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus disease of (COVID-19) in Daegu, southeast of the capital Seoul, South Korea, March 2, 2020.  REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon © Thomson Reuters South Korean soldiers wearing protective gear sanitize a street in front of the city hall after the rapid rise in confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus disease of (COVID-19) in Daegu, southeast of the capital Seoul, South Korea, March 2, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon The case has again heightened the risk of more people being diagnosed with the virus in the Republic, with particular fears about visitors who were recently in the 11 towns in northern Italy at the centre of the outbreak there.

Another five fatalities were announced in Italy yesterday, taking its death toll to 34 as the infection continues to cripple the country's northern regions.

A South Korean soldier wearing protective gear is seen in front of the city hall after the rapid rise in confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus disease of (COVID-19) in Daegu, southeast of the capital Seoul, South Korea, March 2, 2020.  REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon © Thomson Reuters A South Korean soldier wearing protective gear is seen in front of the city hall after the rapid rise in confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus disease of (COVID-19) in Daegu, southeast of the capital Seoul, South Korea, March 2, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon The parents at the Dublin school are to receive a briefing from HSE officials at the school this morning.

Asked what restricted movement meant for the pupils, Dr Cuddihy said: "They need to limit social interactions, not go to school, work or sporting events."

He added that they should avoid contact with vulnerable groups. These include elderly people and those with weakened immune systems.

The decision only relates to this school and does not have implications for other schools.

Asked if more travel restrictions should be imposed in light of the risk of people abroad bringing it back to Ireland, health officials said it was a matter for individuals whether they travel or not. The Department of Foreign Affairs is advising against travel to mainland China and affected areas of northern Italy but there is no travel ban.

(left to right) HSE National Director, Acute Operations Liam Woods, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health Dr Tony Holohan, and Director, National Virus Reference Laboratory Dr Cillian De Gascun, during a press conference at the Department of Health, Dublin where they gave an update on on Ireland's preparedness for Covid-19. (Photo by Brian Lawless/PA Images via Getty Images) © PA Wire/PA Images (left to right) HSE National Director, Acute Operations Liam Woods, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health Dr Tony Holohan, and Director, National Virus Reference Laboratory Dr Cillian De Gascun, during a press conference at the Department of Health, Dublin where they gave an update on on Ireland's preparedness for Covid-19. (Photo by Brian Lawless/PA Images via Getty Images) The at-risk regions remain China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Iran and four areas in northern Italy - Lombardy, Veneto, Emilia-Romagna and Piedmont.

Health Minister Simon Harris said it was important people heeded the advice of public health doctors who, following a risk assessment, decided it was best to close the school as a precautionary measure.

"It is important that schools stay open and follow the advice of the HSE in this regard," he added.

He said he appreciated the concerns of people involved and asked that they contact their GP if they had questions.

A woman wearing face mask, sunglasses and face shield is seen at a subway station as the country is hit by an outbreak of the novel coronavirus, in Shanghai, China March 2, 2020. REUTERS/Aly Song © Thomson Reuters A woman wearing face mask, sunglasses and face shield is seen at a subway station as the country is hit by an outbreak of the novel coronavirus, in Shanghai, China March 2, 2020. REUTERS/Aly Song Dr Mel Bates, a GP in north Dublin, said family doctors were seeing an increase in questions from the "worried well" and this was expected to increase this week.

These patients do not fit into current risk categories but are worried that if the virus starts to spread here they will be vulnerable. "They may have had surgery and are worried if this leaves them at particular risk," he added.

(Left to right) Dr John Cuddihy, HSE director of public health, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan, and Deputy chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn, during a press conference at Department of Health in Dublin after the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in the Irish Republic. (Photo by Niall Carson/PA Images via Getty Images) © PA Wire/PA Images (Left to right) Dr John Cuddihy, HSE director of public health, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan, and Deputy chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn, during a press conference at Department of Health in Dublin after the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in the Irish Republic. (Photo by Niall Carson/PA Images via Getty Images) Other GPs have expressed concern at the amount of time it is taking them to contact public health doctors on the phone with one doctor saying it is taking 45 minutes to get through. GPs must phone the public health doctors if they are contacted by a patient who has been abroad in an at-risk region and has potential symptoms of the virus.

Meanwhile, the first person in Scotland has tested positive for coronavirus.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS:

Irish secondard school to close for 14 days (Independent.ie)

What you need to know as Irish case confirmed (The Journal)

What it's like to be tested for Covid-19 (Sky News)

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