The number of coronavirus cases being reported in Brighton and Hove has continued to fall, according the latest figures released by the government.
The official figures for the seven days to Monday 30 November included 160 new cases, down 16 per cent from 191 in the previous seven days.
The cumulative number of coronavirus cases in Brighton and Hove now stands at just over 4,100.
And the latest figures suggested that the rate of new covid-19 infections stood at 55 per 100,000 people, down from 65.7 – one of that lowest rates in the whole of Britain.
The number of people from Brighton and Hove who have died and have covid mentioned on their death certificate is 185 so far.
This compares with a total of about 2,000 deaths from all causes so far this year. And since the end of May, the number of deaths from all causes has been below the five-year average in all but eight weeks out of 25.
Earlier this week Brighton and Hove’s main hospital trust, Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals (BSUH), said that it had admitted 690 coronavirus patients since the start of the pandemic.
Of those, 72 were still in hospital. The trust runs the Royal Sussex County Hospital and the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital, in Brighton, and the Princess Royal, in Haywards Heath.
A further 449 patients were discharged after being treated while 169 – almost a quarter – had died.
Patients who had recovered had an average hospital stay of just over 18 days while patients who died lasted on average just over 17 days from when they were admitted.
At the BSUH board meeting on Tuesday (1 December) BSUH chief executive Dame Marianne Griffiths said that only five of the 72 covid patients currently being treated by the trust was receiving critical care. The rest were on general wards.
And 47 – or more than two thirds – of the 70 patients so far to have received critical care had recovered enough to be discharged.
The total number of coronavirus admissions had stayed steady at about 500 from the end of May until the figures started going up again.
But although almost 200 people have been admitted over the past few months, the highest number in a single day has been 14 and mostly the daily admission numbers have been single-figure.
Today (Saturday 5 December) the government said that 15,539 people tested positive in the past 24 hours when the latest figures were published at 4pm.
The number of cases in the past seven days totalled 100,801, down 12,271 or 10.9 per cent compared with Sunday 22 November to Saturday 28 November
The daily number of deaths of people who had tested positive for the coronavirus in the previous 28 days was 397, making a total of 61,014.
Yesterday, Sussex Police urged the public “to continue to follow guidelines to prevent the spread of covid-19 as they enjoy the first weekend since full lockdown restrictions were eased”.
The force said: “Earlier this week the government introduced ‘tier 2’ restrictions in Sussex.
“Hospitality venues must stop taking orders at 10pm and no mixing of households is permitted indoors.
“Police officers and PCSOs will continue to be out and about in communities to engage with members of the public, explain the new government regulations and encourage them to follow them.”
Chief Superintendent Jane Derrick said: “We know the vast majority of people will continue to adhere to the legislation as they have throughout this public health crisis.
“In the run up to Christmas, people want to socialise but we urge you to only do so within the ‘tier 2’ guidelines.
“Our officers and staff have been patrolling across the county and engaging with members of the public to explain the current legislation generally and people have acted positively.
“However, those who continue to choose to flout the rules and put other people’s lives at risk will face enforcement action.
“The demands on the police service are nearly now back to pre-covid levels.
“Our priorities lie with public safety and so it is even more important that people take personal responsibility for their actions and do their bit to prevent the spread of the virus so the force can operate effectively for those who need us most.
“If people are aware of a serious and current breach of the government’s coronavirus regulations, we would ask them to report it to us online. 999 should only be used in an emergency.”
