LAST UPDATE | 11 Apr 2020

GOVERNMENT MINISTERS, POLITICIANS and Irish embassies are joining members of the public in leaving a light in their front windows to commemorate the work being done by frontline healthcare staff and essential workers, as well as remember those who are sick with Covid-19.

The ‘Shine A Light’/'Shine Your Light’ gesture of appreciation and solidarity is similar to those done in other countries, as health systems buckle and societies adjust to the lockdowns introduced in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

A light will be shone on public buildings, Irish embassies, and peacekeeping posts all around the world, with the images being shared on RTÉ television and online.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said on Twitter tonight: “We’re inviting everyone to #ShineYourLight for our healthcare and essential workers at 9pm tonight.

For the sick, the grieving, and everyone affected by #Covid19. Our public buildings, embassies and peacekeeping missions around the world are joining in. I hope you do too.

Health Minister Simon Harris said that “Tonight as we #ShineALight, I want to say thank you to all the incredible people at the frontline in our hospitals & communities, in the Department of Health, the HSE, and to our brilliant Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan. 

“I want to thank the Irish people -your efforts are saving lives. Together, we will prevail.”

HSE chief Paul Reid said: “Tonight I’m bursting with pride to be Irish and to be leading the HSE. To all the families who have lost loved ones, people who are sick, all healthcare workers & those who are feeling isolated.” 

Uachtarán na hÉireann Michael D Higgins and Sabina Higgins lit lanterns outside Áras an Uachtarán this evening, as a symbol of “hope and solidarity”:

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Here are some other images shared this evening:

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Irish Lighthouses said they were “honoured to pay tribute to our health care colleagues at the front line of the national effort to combat Covid-19″.

“As part of the Shine Your Light Initiative, Irish Lights is very pleased to announce that we have made a video to mark our own tribute to our health care colleagues. We encourage everyone to shine a light at 9pm, 11 April to acknowledge their tremendous and heroic work.”

Fingal County Council tonight lit up six iconic buildings across the county: Swords Castle, Bremore Castle, Ardgillan Castle and the Casino in Malahide – as well as County Hall in Swords and the Civic Offices in Blanchardstown.