Northern Ireland could return to full lockdown if there is a second wave of coronavirus, health minister Robin Swann has warned.
"If we tread carefully, if we come out of the lockdown slow enough, managed enough to make sure the virus is being managed and being restricted in its spread, if there is a second wave it may not be as critical as the one we saw at the start," he said.
"But if we get to a point where our health service is being threatened, where we assess that we don't have the number of ICU beds in the current system to manage what will be a potential second wave, then our only option is to go back into a second lockdown."
Mr Swann welcomed the third day without any new deaths from coronavirus being reported.
But he also expressed caution and said Northern Ireland is not out of the woods yet.
The Ulster Unionist said he was "reminded of a verse that said 'do not boast about tomorrow for you do not know what a day may bring'."
"Whilst that, along with the low number of daily reported cases, it is encouraging but I would urge people to remain mindful of the serious threat that this virus continues to present," he told Stormont's coronavirus briefing today.
"And as always we must never forget that the coronavirus has claimed the lives of many hundreds of our citizens and for those families the grief still remains incredibly raw.
"Covid-19 and its aftermath represent the greatest challenge for our health service since its inception."
Mr Swann also condemned a recent spike of 35 attacks on ambulance staff in just one week.
He urged those responsible to "stop it and stop it now", adding: "You are bringing shame on our society."
