Flu kills 24 people in Ireland this season

A total of 24 people in Ireland have died from flu so far this season, said local health officials on Thursday.

Dr Kevin Kelleher, an official with the Health Service Executive (HSE), a government-run body providing all public heath services in the country, said that the majority of the people killed by flu had underlying health problems.

He said the deaths took place across all age groups.

The latest information suggests flu cases have either peaked last week or will peak this week, said Dr Kelleher, adding that the current flu season, which began about a week before Christmas, is the fifth worst in the country over the past 17 years.

To prevent the spread of flu, the HSE has urged people in high-risk groups, especially old people and children, to get the flu vaccine, and made free-of-charge flu vaccine available for people in at-risk groups.