Sunderland's 'worrying' rise in Covid case figures put down to new strain of virus
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Case rates more than doubled according to weekly figures, with the rate up to Saturday, January 2 standing at 514.2 per 100,000 people, compared to the seven days before, when it was 216.1 per 100,000 people.
As of January 6, a total of 14,856 cases had been recorded in the city since figures were first shared in March. South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust has reported 670 deaths in the same period.
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Hide AdGerry Taylor, Executive Director of Public Health and Integrated Commissioning, said: “Sunderland’s rise is of course worrying.
“We’ve had the third highest daily infection rates in the North East in recent days, and the country is also of course recording a high rate of cases.
“The new strain is circulating, causing cases to accelerate rapidly, and so increase the risk of more widespread transmission.
“This is in line with what’s happening nationally and why it is more important than ever that we all follow the rules of the national lockdown.
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Hide Ad“It’s a very straight-forward message and the regulations are very clear: Stay at home unless it is absolutely necessary to go out.
“You should only leave home for a number of specific reasons set by the Government, such as going to work if you can’t work from home; shopping for basics and essentials; exercising once a day; to seek medical attention; and other exceptional circumstances.
“Staying at home and avoiding all contact with those outside your household or support bubble will help deny this virus the opportunity to spread further.”