GOOD MORNING. Here’s all the news that you need to know as you start your Saturday.
1. The death toll from the worst European floods in decades has risen overnight to 153.
German authorities have confirmed this morning that 90 people died in the Rhineland-Palatinate region alone while 43 people have died in the neighbouring North Rhine-Westphalia.
That brings the death toll in Germany to 133. A further 20 people have died in Belgium.
2. Gardaí are appealing for information following a fatal road collision in Clontibret, Co Monaghan overnight.
A male driver, aged in his teens, was pronounced dead at the scene following the incident involving two cars at 11.30pm last night.
The N2 remains closed at Tullybuck, Co Monaghan today following the incident, according to a garda press statement.
3. Public health officials have warned of a rise in Covid-19 cases among people aged between 16 and 34 after 1,173 new cases were confirmed last night.
The majority of cases are occurring in people who have not yet been fully vaccinated, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said last evening.
Chair of the Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group, Professor Philip Nolan, tweeted graphs showing a significant rise in cases recently among those aged 16 and 34.
He called the rise in those aged 16-18 “exceptional”.
4. Amid concern about the sharp rise in Covid-19 cases in recent days, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly says his department will begin the process of building extra surge capacity in intensive care units.
Speaking in the Seanad yesterday, Donnelly said “we don’t know how bad it’s going to get” but modelling suggests that some 200 Covid-19 patients could be in ICU in a few months’ time.
“We know that the numbers in hospitals have doubled in the last three weeks, and because of exponential growth, they will continue to double,” said Donnelly.
“We’re going to have to start building up additional surge capacity for ICU now, in case it happens.”
5. Despite the spread of the Delta variant of Covid-19 across the UK, England is set to lift all remaining public health restrictions from Monday.
Yesterday, the UK reported over 51,000 new cases, the highest number of daily infections since 15 January.
So how is the Delta variant spreading and what can Ireland learn from the situation in the UK?
6. Port workers at a Dublin shipping company have agreed to suspend strike action planned for Monday to allow for talks with management.
Represented by Siptu, staff at Doyle Shipping Group had voted in favour of industrial action earlier this month in a dispute concerning their pay, terms and conditions of employment and safety concerns within their workplace.
Siptu had accused the company of refusing to negotiate with representatives, but an agreement has now been reached to suspend the industrial action to allow discussions with the company to begin next week.
7. SDLP leader Colum Eastwood says he received death threats after naming Solider F in the House of Commons.
On Tuesday, the Foyle MP used parliamentary privilege to name the former British soldier accused of murdering two men during Bloody Sunday.
Yesterday, the Speaker of the House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, said Eastwood had “broken no rules” because his comments were made during consideration of legislation.
8. Tesla chief executive Elon Musk faced some difficult questions this week in a court action taken against him by shareholders in his own company.
At the heart of the matter is a deal struck by Tesla in 2016 to buy a struggling solar company for $2.6 billion. Musk was chairman of both entities at the time and the plaintiffs in the legal action have accused him of using his influence with the Tesla board to ram through the deal.
So what happened in the first week of the trial?
9. There’s good news for football fans as Dublin’s Aviva Stadium has been named as the venue for the 2024 UEFA Europa League Final.
The Football Association of Ireland confirmed the news in a statement last night.
It’s some consolation for the loss of Euro 2020 fixtures, whic were pulled from Dublin at the last minute due to concerns about Covid-19.
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