ONLY FOUR new cases of coronavirus have been reported in the Winchester district in the last 24 hours, the lowest number since September.
The number of cases in the Winchester district edged up from 1,750 to 1,754, an infection rate since March of 1,404.8 per 100,000. There were only 118 reported across the whole Hampshire County Council area.
For clarity ‘Winchester district’ comprises more than the built-up city and is the council area which stretches from Micheldever in the north to Southwick in the south, from Sparsholt in the west to Bramdean in the east.
The worst-affected area in the district remains 'Winchester East' comprising Winnall, Highcliffe, Bar End, Wharf Hill and parts of the city centre. The latest available figures show that in the seven days to November 28 there have been 11 cases, down three, a 21.4 per cent fall, giving a rolling number for the week of 135, about the national average.
Across the Winchester district the rolling figure to November 28 is now down to 80.1 per 100,000. In Alresford is has dropped even more sharply to 47.3.
In the last seven days there have only been 101 new cases in Winchester district. In the previous seven days the number was 142, showing the steady decline.
The Chronicle has learned from city councillor Brian Laming that Badger Farm Community Centre will be an immunisation centre, opening later this month. That has yet to be confirmed by the health authorities.
Two new deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours in the Hampshire County Council area bringing the total to 877, of those who died with 28 days of a positive test.
There was one death reported by NHS England in the area covered by the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust which includes the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester.
In Winchester City Council area the figures for deaths as of today is 97, up one. In Portsmouth it is 102, up two, and 135 in Southampton, no change.
So far, at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust there have been 210 deaths; 227 people have died at University Hospital Southampton, no change, whilst at Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust the toll is now 286, up two. Since the start of the pandemic, there have been a total of 748 deaths in the NHS across Hampshire.
Another school has reported a Covid case, this time Swanmore College, which remains open. Only Perins secondary school closed in the Winchester district with the market town of Alresford at the centre of a hotspot that has now cooled.
The drop in Covid cases has yet to be reflected in the numbers of patients in local hospitals. The latest available figures are 69 at Basingstoke and North Hampshire and 39 at RHCH. The figure of 108 is exactly the same as last week. Then there were 54 at each hospital.
The numbers of people in hospitals remains high as there will be a time gap before the reduced infection rates are reflected in patient numbers.
On Monday, the latest day for which figures are available, there were 152 Covid admissions at hospitals across the south-east, including Hampshire, down 12 on Sunday. Yesterday there are 1,339 Covid patients on Tuesday, up 57 on Tuesday and 117 on ventilators yesterday, down one.
Other coronavirus news:
A Winchester golf course which had allowed the public to wander the fairways during lockdown has now asked people to stay away as golf resumes
Hampshire to have a Covid vaccine hub
Naomi House hospice offers to help vaccine programme
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