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| - An eerie calm descended on the streets of Dublin on Friday as workers and students obeyed strict government measures designed to stem the spread of the coronavirus in Ireland and stayed home. Schools and universities closed on Thursday for two weeks while mass gatherings are banned and social distancing -- including remote working -- has been strongly recommended. The Republic has had 70 confirmed cases and one death from the COVID-19, well behind neighbouring Britain as well as Italy -- the hardest hit nation in Europe with more than a thousand deaths. In the capital, residents are taking the prospect of further infections seriously, leaving streets and workplaces silent in a bid to slow the spread. Buses and trams were largely empty on Friday morning. Deserted cafes encouraged contactless payment while theatres and museums were locked up. A smattering of pedestrians wore medical face masks, others had scarves pulled over their mouths as a makeshift protective measure. "I've never experienced anything like this in my lifetime -- never," said 70 year-old Mike Convey in the becalmed shopping district. "You had flu and those things, but this is different. It's frightening really." "We have not witnessed a pandemic of this nature in living memory. This is unchartered territory," said Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in Washington on Thursday. The premier cut short his traditional St Patricks Day trip to the USA, flying home to manage the emergency. Meanwhile, Ireland's armed forces and police have taken special measures to prepare for a greater role in daily life. "I know that some of this is coming as a real shock and it is going to involve big changes in the way we live our lives. I know that I am asking people to make enormous sacrifices," Varadkar said. There are roughly 922,000 school and 230,000 higher education students according to the most recent figures. Outside the gates of primary school Scoil Una Naofa in west Dublin, parents picking up their children on Thursday were mostly grateful for the measure. "I know it's going to be hard on a lot of people but it has to be done to save lives," said Patrick Kiernan, picking up his two grandchildren from the school. "I think something should have been in place last week to not just have to do it at the last minute, which is the way it turned out today." Others now face the struggle of finding two weeks of childcare at the last minute. "It's crazy. What am I supposed to do? I've got work," asked 37 year-old accountant Deirdre Byrne, collecting her child. As Varadkar announced the special measures on Thursday there were widespread reports of panic-buying and stockpiling in supermarkets across Ireland. A Lidl supermarket in central Dublin had replenished shelves on Friday, but stock was already dwindling by mid-morning. "There is no need to stockpile or panic buy - retailers have confirmed there is no problem with stocks or supply chains," foreign and deputy prime minister Simon Coveney assured on Twitter Thursday night. "I've just come in to get a little bit of shopping -- not panic-buying now, just what I normally would do on a Friday," said Helen McCabe. She was tailed by her five year-old grand-daughter Lily, now out of school for two weeks and requiring care. "If you're just sensible and take a few precautions you should be ok," McCabe added in a reassuring tone. Elsewhere, small independent vendors selling non-essentials face foot-traffic drying up, endangering their fragile business models. "It's Mother's Day next weekend on the 22nd. So I'm thinking I might not even bother coming out for it," said florist stallholder Paul Stanley. "If you put money into it and the country goes on lockdown the flowers are no good on the stalls." "I'll probably start winding down now until it gets better." jts/jwp/bsp
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