Lancashire records its first Covid-19 deaths in almost a week
Written by Skywave Radio News on July 7, 2020
Two more people with coronavirus have died in Lancashire’s hospitals, it has been confirmed.
The deaths were confirmed this afternoon (July 7) by NHS England.
Both people with the virus lost their lives under the care of Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which manages both Royal Preston Hospital and Chorley Hospital.
The deaths occurred more than a week ago on June 28 and June 29, respectively.
There can be a delay in reporting figures, as there has been with these, meaning each death is not reported by the NHS on the following day.
As such, increases or decreases in the numbers should be treated with caution.
Until today, no coronavirus deaths had been recorded in Lancashire since last Thursday (July 2).
It brings the total number of Covid-related deaths at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals to 243.
Across Lancashire, 991 people with coronavirus have now tragically lost their lives.
167 people have died at the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust. It is worth noting the trust also manages sites in Cumbria.
At the East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, 200 people with Covid-19 have died and at Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, 232 people with the virus have passed away.
At Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust, 149 people with Covid have died.
Across England’s hospitals, a further 36 Covid deaths were recorded today.
Of those who have sadly passed away, 23 people were aged 80 or older; nine were aged 60 to 79; and four were aged 40 to 59.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly has said the new coronavirus tracker app has “privacy at its core” as he appealed to people to download it.
The app has been downloaded by more than 250,000 people since it became available on Monday night.
Mr Donnelly said “today is a good news day” for the country’s fight against Covid-19.
The app informs you if you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for Covid-19. Mr Donnelly said he understands people’s concerns about data privacy regarding the tracker.
He said: “Those concerns are very real and reasonable. The app has been developed with privacy by design at its core. We are also encouraging friends and families to help those that may not be as technically literate, to download and use the app. We’ve ensured that from the very first version, the app is available in English and in Irish, and we are very much open to incorporating other languages in future upgrades as we receive feedback.”
Mr Donnelly said privacy is built into the app at every point in the process.
He said if someone tests positive for Covid-19, they will receive a phone call where they will receive advice.
“If you have the tracker app, you will be asked your permission for your phone to share the close contact information. You can say no at this point. The app is opt in – no-one is being forced to download or use it.”
HSE chief executive Paul Reid confirmed that as of Tuesday morning, the app has been downloaded by 250,000 people since it was launched on Monday night.
Mr Reid said he “had a dream that we had a quarter of a million users of this app”.
“I can confirm that it isn’t a dream, we have that many users. It is a phenomenal achievement.”
Mr Reid appealed to people to tell everyone in their networks to download it.
