Covid cases in Devon and Cornwall down a third in a week
They are at the lowest level since mid-September
The number of new coronavirus confirmed across Devon and Cornwall have fallen a third in the last week and to the lowest level since mid-September.
A total of 292 new cases were confirmed across the two counties in the last week – the first week with less than 300 since the week ending September 18– with the total since the start of the pandemic at 47,410.
Cases confirmed in the last week have risen in Exeter and North Devon – both though by a single figure total – and have fallen everywhere else in the two counties.
Government stats show that 292 new cases have been confirmed across the region in the past seven days in both pillar 1 data from tests carried out by the NHS and pillar 2 data from commercial partners, compared to 397 new cases confirmed last week.
Of the 292 new cases confirmed since March 26, 92 were in Cornwall, with 23 in East Devon, 25 in Exeter, 17 in Mid Devon, 9 in North Devon, 74 in Plymouth, 11 in South Hams, 15 in Teignbridge, 19 in Torbay, 3 in Torridge and 4 in West Devon
This compares to the 397 new cases confirmed between March 19 and 25, of which 109 were in Cornwall, with 44 in East Devon, 19 in Exeter, 20 in Mid Devon, 7 in North Devon, 126 in Plymouth, 11 in South Hams, 16 in Teignbridge, 27 in Torbay, 9 in Torridge and 9 in West Devon.
For specimens from between March 22 and 28, North Devon has the lowest infection rates in England, with Teignbridge and Torridge also in the bottom ten
With schools having broken up for Easter, infection rates in the 0-19s in Torbay are at the same level – 14.3/100,000 – than they were before children returned to school in early March, while across the rest of the Devon, infection rates are now lower than before schools went back, at 20.5/100,000 compared to 23/100,000, with infection 0-19s in East Devon, Exeter, and Teignbridge lower than before the return of schools.
Figures in Mid Devon, North Devon, South Hams, Torridge and West Devon for infection rates in 0-19s are higher now than before schools went back, but in all areas, the rise is numbers of additional cases can be counted on one hand, with Torridge, West Devon and North Devon’s figures the equivalent to one additional case a week.
The number of patients in hospitals across Devon following a positive Covid-19 test have nearly halved in the last week to levels last seen in early October.
As of Tuesday morning (March 30), there were 19 patients across the county in hospital after a positive test, down on the 34 as of the previous Tuesday. It is the lowest figure since early October.
And in Cornwall, the patients in hospital have also fallen, dropping from 13 last week to seven as of Tuesday, to the lowest numbers since mid-December.
North Devon District Hospital once again have no patients in its beds following a positive Covid-19 test, while patient numbers in Torbay are the lowest since October 9 and in Plymouth, the lowest since October 1.
In total there were 13 patients at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (down from 21 as of March 23), 3 at Torbay Hospital (down from 6), 3 in Derriford Hospital in Plymouth (down from 6), and 0 at North Devon District Hospital (down from1).
There are also five patients in Royal Cornwall Hospitals and two in Cornish Partnership Trust hospitals
And the number of patients in mechanical ventilation beds across the two counties is down as well to 4, from 6 last week, with all four being at the RDE. There are no patients in mechanical ventilation beds in Cornwall.