NEED TO CATCH up? The Journal brings you a round-up of today’s news.

IRELAND

Sunbathers and swimmers flocked to beaches such as Brittas Bay in Wicklow for another day of sunshine RollingNews.ie RollingNews.ie

• 1,179 further cases of Covid-19 were confirmed in Ireland.
• Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said that unsolicited calls to the Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan and his Deputy Ronan Glynn are “absolutely appalling”.
• Met Éireann issued a ‘high temperature advisory’, with the warm weather expected to continue for much of the coming week.
• Irish Water said that residents in parts of north county Dublin may experience low water pressure or outages until 10am tomorrow.
• Dublin City Council lodged planning applications to purchase several buildings on the quays to allow the Abbey Theatre to expand.
• A pregnant woman told The Journal that she was left unable to avail of maternity services for over three weeks after being registered incorrectly as a man by the State.
• The HSE’s lead of testing and tracing said that cases linked to international travel now account for around 10% of all new infections.
• A national outbreak of early infectious syphilis was declared in Ireland.
• Irish passport holders in Northern Ireland will not be able to use the EU Digital Covid Certificate

INTERNATIONAL

#OLYMPICS: Fears of a cluster of Covid-19 cases in Tokyo’s Olympic Village rose after two South African footballers and a support staff member tested positive.

#FLOODS: German Chancellor Angela Merkel travelled to see the “surreal” devastation in the flood-ravaged region of Germany.

#BORIS:UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson quickly u-turned on his decision not to self isolate after being deemed a close contact of Health Secretary Sajid Javid, who tested positive for Covid-19 yesterday.

PARTING SHOT

Ireland AM’s Australian-born reporter Brianna Parkins had some tips for those of us who can’t hack the heat.

You don’t need a Dyson fan. You need to keep your blinds down and your windows open. Create cross breezes with your doors. Heat rises = decamp to downstairs. Wet tea towels put them in the freezer. Put them around your neck.

— Brianna Parkins (@parkinsbrea) July 18, 2021