There have been four further Covid-related deaths reported in Northern Ireland in the latest 24 hours.
The total number of deaths now stands at 3,160 – 18 of which occurred in the last seven days, according to the Department of Health’s daily dashboard.
The Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon borough has recorded 424 deaths to date; two in the last seven days.
There have been 240 deaths in the Newry Mourne and Down district, one of which occurred in the past seven days, while Mid Ulster accounts for 298 – up one – deaths, four of those in the past seven days.
A has been an increase in positive cases in the last 24 hours, up from 2,465 to 2,987.
There have been 19,907 positive cases in the last seven days.
Within the past 24 hours, there were 396 positive cases in Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon – again, the second highest in Northern Ireland.
There were 209 cases in Newry, Mourne and Down while Mid Ulster recorded 214. Belfast – the highest in NI – recorded 537 positive cases.
There are 476 – up 39 on Monday – patients in hospitals across Northern Ireland as a result of the virus.
There are 12 – down one – patients with Covid-19 in hospital intensive care units.
Hospital capacity currently sits at 106% – up1%.
Meanwhile, today marks the day Northern Ireland removed all remaining Covid-19 restrictions.
The rules being removed from law are the use of Covid certificates in nightclubs, face coverings, track and trace requirements and the cap on 30 people allowed in private homes.
Self-isolation will remain for those who test positive.
The chairman of the British Medical Association in Northern Ireland, Dr Tom Black, welcomed the lifting of remaining restrictions urged caution.
“We need to be cautious, we need to maintain some protections and I think we’re moving from restrictions to protections, especially for those most vulnerable in society who will be quite worried about these developments,” Dr Tom Black told BBC News NI.
“We need to reassure them with our actions, which means continuing with our masks and social distancing, trying to make sure that our fellow citizens, who are immunocompromised are well protected.”
