ANOTHER person from the Winchester district has today been reported to have died of Covid-19.

Today, for the fifth day running, Hampshire saw more than 200 new cases of Covid-19. The number of county cases has soared from 8,063 (since the start of the pandemic) last Tuesday to 9,797 today, an increase of 1,734. Today's increase is 247.

Two more deaths have today been reported in the Hampshire County Council area, bringing the figure to 746.

The number of Covid patients at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital continues to rise. Today it is 47, up from the last available figure of 33 on Thursday.

A spokesperson said this afternoon: "There are currently 47 patients who have tested positive for Covid-19 being cared for at our hospital in Winchester. We are closely monitoring the situation and have seen an increase in Covid-19 cases, which is why it is so important for everyone – staff, patients and the public – to follow the guidelines, socially distance, wash their hands and wear a mask.”

In the Winchester district there have been 22 new cases today bringing the number since the start of the pandemic to 991, an infection rate of 793.7 per 100,000 people. See graph below:

Hampshire Chronicle:

The rate for new cases in the Winchester district for the seven days to Saturday October 23, the latest available, is 114.5 people per 100,000 (143 cases), a figure that is climbing sharply. On the week to October 16 the figure was 79.3 (99 cases). Five towns in Hampshire currently have weekly infection rates of more than 100 per 100,000 people - Eastleigh, Southampton, Portsmouth and Rushmoor.

‘Winchester district’ comprises more than just the city and is the city council area which stretches from Micheldever in the north to Southwick in the south, from Sparsholt in the west to Bramdean in the east.

There have been no new cases reported in schools, colleges or universities following the six at Winchester University on Monday bringing the number of students affected to 26, although seven have recovered. In the last seven days new cases have been reported at Denmead, John Keble in Hursley, and Owslebury primaries and Kings' secondary.

Hampshire Chronicle:

The number of deaths in Hampshire hospitals is now 637, up three today. The figure for fatalities at the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which includes the RHCH, is 167, up one. For the other local trusts: Portsmouth, 240; Solent, 2; Southern Health, 17; Southampton, 211 (up two). Seven deaths were reported in Southampton on Tuesday and today.

Only deaths that occur in hospitals where the patient has tested positive for Covid-19 are recorded, with deaths in the community excluded, such as those in care homes.

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death. This means some of the deaths that were first recorded in the latest period may actually have taken place days earlier.

Across the south-east region, which includes Hampshire, there were 509 patients in hospital today, up 45 on Monday. Regarding Covid patients admitted to hospital, the latest available figure is 67 reported on Sunday, up two on Saturday, in the south-east region, which includes Hampshire. The numbers are not broken down for the hospitals in Hampshire. There are 23 people on ventilators, up eight on Monday.

The total number of deaths since the start of the pandemic of people who had had a positive test result for Covid-19 and died within 28 days of the first positive test, is: Hampshire, 746, up two (54.0 per 100,000 people), Portsmouth, 79 (36.8) and Southampton, 128 (50.7). The Winchester district figure, the city council area, is 82, a rate of 65.7, higher than the other three areas mentioned. But all the Hampshire figures are below the national average.

The R number, the reproduction number, in the south-east has dropped slightly to between 1.2 and 1.5 meaning that on average every 10 people infected will infect between 12 and 15 other people. The growth rate in the south east region is now between +4% and +7%, meaning the number of new infections is growing by up to 7% every day.