No overnight rise in Covid-19 cases in Borders for second day in a row

That’s the first time two days have gone by without any additional cases of the disease being reported here for over two weeks.

The last time that happened was Monday and Tuesday, May 4 and 5, and prior to that the most recent such run of standstill statistics was back in mid-March.

The 322 cases confirmed here are among 14,969 nationwide, up from 14,856 yesterday.

Across the UK, 254,195 people have tested positive for the disease, up 3,287 on the day before.

It’s now well over two months since the first two cases of Covid-19, as the illness is also known, were confirmed in the Borders on Wednesday, March 11, and getting on for three months since Scotland’s first case, in Tayside, was announced on Sunday, March 1, after spreading across the world from Wuhan in China.

The death toll claimed in the region by coronavirus stands at 34, as of Tuesday, up two on the week before.

Figures issued by the National Records of Scotland on Wednesday, taking into account all deaths attributed to coronavirus and not just among those previously tested and found to be infected, put the death toll for the region at 54 as of Sunday, however – 22 higher than the Scottish Government figure of 32 at that time.

It’s now been over a month and a half since the first five fatalities among Covid-19 patients here were announced on Monday, March 30, with another 29 following to date.

They are among 2,245 coronavirus patients killed by the disease in Scotland so far, up from 2,134 overnight, and 36,393 UK-wide, a rise of 351 on the day before.

The number of cases of Covid-19 in the Borders remains higher than in one of its neighbouring health board areas, Dumfries and Galloway’s total being 257, but is still well below the two others, Lanarkshire and Lothian being up to 1,913 and 2,634 respectively.

Altogether, 38 Scots are in intensive care receiving treatment for coronavirus, along with another 12 suspected to be infected but awaiting test results.

Hospitals in the region are currently treating 12 patients confirmed to have Covid-19.

Almost 98,000 tests for the illness have been carried out in Scotland so far, with 82,638 giving negative results.

Giving an update in Edinburgh today on the outbreak, Scottish Government first minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “There have been 14,969 positive cases confirmed, an increase of 113 from yesterday.

“A total of 1,257 patients are in hospital with Covid-19, 874 of them confirmed as having Covid and 383 suspected of having it. That represents a total decrease of 61 from yesterday, and that includes a decrease of 35 in the number of confirmed cases.

“A total of 50 people last night were in intensive care with either confirmed or suspected Covid-19. That is a decrease of one since yesterday.

“I am also able to confirm today that since March 5, a total of 3,508 patients who had tested positive and been hospitalised with the virus have been able to leave hospital, which is, of course, very good news.

“Unfortunately, though, I also have to report that in the last 24 hours, 24 deaths have been registered of patients confirmed through a test as having Covid-19. That takes the total number of deaths in Scotland, under that measurement, to 2,245.

“These numbers are not simply statistics. They represent individuals who are being mourned by friends, family and loved ones. I want to send my deepest and heartfelt condolences to everyone who has suffered a loss to this virus.”

Ms Sturgeon also explained further the lockdown exit strategy document she announced yesterday, saying: “The steps it sets out are by necessity gradual and incremental, and we will monitor them carefully as they do take effect, and our plans will change if the data, evidence or our knowledge of the virus changes.

“That could include lifting restrictions more quickly than we otherwise think we can do.

“I want to stress – and this is a really important point – that none of the changes are yet in place.

“During this bank holiday weekend and into next week, the current lockdown restrictions are still in place.

“That’s important for me to stress. The one thing that will slow down the lifting of lockdown is us taking our foot off the brake too quickly and allowing the virus to spread rapidly again.

“However, on a more optimistic note, as things stand, we intend to enter the first phase of easing restrictions, from next Thursday, May 28, now less than one week away.

“By then, I hope we will still be seeing progress against the virus, but also by then we will also be ready to start with our test, trace and isolate programme, a key tool for us in continuing to keep the virus suppressed as we start gradually easing these restrictions.

“Not all of the phase-one measures will necessarily be introduced immediately next Thursday, though I hope most will be, but we’ll have to make a judgement at the time.

“More outdoor activity will be permitted. There is a strong emphasis in the first phase on outdoor activity because one of the things we are learning about this virus is that the risks of transmission outdoors – although not zero, absolutely not zero – are nevertheless lower than the risks of transmission indoors.

“You will be able in this first phase to sit or sunbathe in parks and open areas, and as long as you stay two metres apart, you will be able to meet outside, with people from another household, including in private gardens.

“Let me be clear, because I know it is a question that has been asked, that doesn’t limit you to seeing just one specific household during this phase. You can see different households, but we are asking you only to meet one at a time.

“We’re also not intending to put a five-mile limit on the distance you can travel to, for example, sit with your parents in their garden, but we are asking you to use judgement.

“Increasingly as we come out of lockdown, I’m going to be relying more and more on you to exercise the good judgement that I know you will.

“If, for example, you travel a long distance to see a relative outside, you’ll be more likely to go inside the house to use the bathroom, and we don’t want you to go inside others’ houses in this phase because if you are infectious, maybe without knowing it, you risk leaving the virus on surfaces inside the house and that would pose a risk to other people, particularly if you’re visiting elderly relatives.

“That is a risk we don’t want you to take, so please use your judgement and have uppermost in your mind the need to protect those you care about, even if that might mean staying apart from them for just a little a bit longer.

“As well as those changes, some non-contact outdoor leisure activities will be allowed to restart from the end of next week, such as golf, tennis, bowls and fishing – croquet as well, as I was asked about in parliament – subject to appropriate hygiene and physical distancing.

“People will be able to travel – preferably by walking or cycling – to a location near their local community for recreation, but here we are asking you to stay fairly local. Five miles will not be a strict limit but it is a guide.

“We don’t want, in this phase, people congregating at tourist hot spots because crowds of people, even if they’re trying to socially distance, bring more risk than we judge is safe to take at this time.

“Waste and recycling services will resume, as will many outdoor businesses.

“The construction industry will be able to carefully implement the first steps in its restart plan.

“Outdoor retail outlets such as garden centres will be allowed to reopen.

“And, very importantly, we will also start, albeit gradually and carefully, to resume NHS services paused as a result of the pandemic.

“Schools will not reopen until August 11, but, during June, teachers will return to prepare for the new term and for a different model of learning.

“In the days ahead, we will publish more detailed advice and information for you the public, as well as guidance covering key sectors of our economy, travel and transport. 
“That’s a really important part of preparing for the move to phase one so that there is as much clarity as possible about what we are saying and what we are asking you not to do at this stage.

“However, I want to emphasise a key point. None of the changes I’ve talked about today are yet in place.

“We can only begin to implement them if we continue to suppress this virus, and that’s why – for the moment – the current lockdown restrictions remain in place.”