Coronavirus infections rise in Hull and the East Riding
A study estimates numbers have risen by 6,442 in a week
The amount of coronavirus infections in Hull and the East Riding have risen by 6,442 in a week, according to study estimates.
Data from the Zoe coronavirus study shows the estimated total of cases in Hull and the East Riding was 26,129 at the latest count on Sunday, January 9.
Coronavirus cases in Hull numbered 14,312 compared to the East Riding total of 11,817.
The latest totals are up from 10,254 and 9,433 respectively in a week.
It comes as East Riding Council’s Public Health Director Andy Kingdom told councillors today (Tuesday, January 11) that there had been massive increases in infections locally since the New Year.
Hull City Council’s Public Health Director Julia Weldon told the authority’s Health and Wellbeing Board today the biggest pressure on hospitals came from staff absences.
Zoe figures show in Hull, the current spike began at the end of last year, when case numbers stood at about 4,500 after falling from from previous highs in November.
Coronavirus cases began spiking prior to that in October.
They rose from below 1,000, when the earlier Delta variant was fuelling increases, particularly as school pupils returned to classrooms after the summer holidays.
Before they peaked at around 7,500 in late August and early September, thought to be caused in part by increases among young adults during the Euro 2020 tournament in July.
Figures stayed below 2,000 months prior, falling from previous highs of about 5,000 in early 2021 when the vaccine rollout was in its early stages.
That peak came after a sharp decline from November when cases had peaked at almost 7,000, rising from about 1,000 in mid-October.
In the East Riding, the peaks and troughs of infections broadly mirrored those in Hull.
The latest surge began at the end of last year when overall case numbers were close to 4,000.
They had come down from a previous peak of almost 6,000 in October, up from roughly 2,000 in September.
September was preceded by a summer surge, beginning at the start of July when figures were well below 100, again partly due to mixing among young adults during the Euros.
Previously figures had slumped from around March, coming down from around 2,500 at the start of 2021 before declining gradually.
The fall came as the UK remained under lockdown at that time and as the vaccine rollout got underway.
That followed a surge from October 2020, when cases peaked at about 3,000 in late November.
Meanwhile, Mr Kingdom told East Riding Council’s Health, Care and Wellbeing Overview and Scrutiny Committee today the local situation was very serious but not dangerous.
He added the current surge would likely continue for about another month but staff absences would dog the NHS and other sectors over roughly the next 10 to 12 days.
The director said: “The number one thing people can do is get the vaccine, our intensive care units are full of people who haven’t had it.
“If people were concerned about potential harm from it they shouldn’t be now, millions have had the vaccine and we can see the protection it’s giving them.
“There will be another wave once infections that older people picked up around New Year start to feed through, it normally takes about seven to 10 days from catching coronavirus to becoming ill.
“We need to not have that and the rise in hospital patients at the same time as staff absences, that’s the nightmare.
“A lot of work is going on behind the scenes to avoid that, if it happens then the hospitals will have to start prioritising.
“Looking at how things have played out in London and the North West, rising hospital admissions don’t seem to be leading to increasing intensive care admissions.
“But they’re still taking up beds and they need oxygen, so that’s the opportunity cost because that bed can’t be given to a stroke patient or someone whose had a fall.”
Ms Weldon told Hull councillors local case rates were expected to remain high or increase slightly as figures come in from children returning to school.
The director said: “In the last seven days we’ve had 58 new coronavirus hospital admissions.
“We’ve had between two and four people in intensive care, but that doesn’t give the full picture because we’ve got significant pressure on primary care, acute care and adult social care services.
“The biggest pressure is coming from workers who are off, the self isolation period may be reduced but people still have to isolate beyond day seven if they test positive currently.”