The Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland has said you would expect environments such as Direct Provision centres to have outbreaks of Covid-19 as there is no way of avoiding close contact with others.

The Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland (MASI) has said you would expect environments such as Direct Provision centres to have outbreaks of Covid-19 as there is no way of avoiding close contact with others. 
MASI spokesperson Bulelani Mfaco’s comments come as the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) said it has growing and significant concerns about the number of outbreaks in congregated settings. 
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Mr Mfaco said he is concerned as the centres are “enclosed with a large number of people living in close quarters”. 
“When there was an outbreak in Newbridge, there were three in one bedroom who all tested positive. None of them had any way of avoiding close contact with others living in the centre.”
He said these places create an “environment where the virus thrives” as people do not have the personal space required. 
He said when you are told to keep two metres away, it is difficult to adhere to this as most share toilets and other facilities and there is not a two metre space, not even between beds in some cases. 
He said if a person tests positive or is identified as a close contact, they are moved to a self-isolation facility.
“They did try to create them in direct provision centres but that did not work as you don’t have facilities where you would not be able to self-isolate so they had to be taken to an off-site facility.”
Mr Mfaco said it is hard to ascertain who is a close contact when you live in a Direct Provision centre.
Read: Latest coronavirus storiesConcern over virus clusters at direct provision centres
He gave the example of the centre he is living in where there are more than 200 people, and questioned if he were to contract Covid-19 would his close contacts be the 18 men with whom he shares some facilities with or the 200+ people he has to queue for food with in the canteen.
He said the current set up of three sharing a room is not good enough. 
He also gave the example of his own situation where he said he does not know the whereabouts of his roommate, adding “we don’t have as much control as you would have if you were in your own home”. 
Yesterday, the Department of Health was notified of 50 new cases of Covid-19 and no additional deaths.
The number of Covid-19-related deaths in Ireland remains at 1,763, while the total number of confirmed cases has risen to 26,303.
NPHET said that of the new cases identified, 31 were men and 19 were women. 81% of the new cases were people under 45 years of age.
For Covid-19, the World Health Organization says that data to date suggests that 80% of infections are mild or asymptomatic, 15% are severe infection, requiring oxygen and 5% are critical, requiring ventilation.