Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets saw its first case of the Coronavirus yesterday according to Public Health England (PHE).
The council are advising people to maintain good hygiene and refer to the NHS England Guidelines.
373 Covid-19 cases were confirmed in the UK, with a jump of 54 new cases in the last 24 hours. There have been six deaths, three of which were announced today.
Hackney
There have been no confirmed cases in the surrounding boroughs of Islington and Haringey.
The Mayor of Hackney, Phil Glanville has said on Twitter that two cases of the virus in Hackney, which were reported on Sunday March 8 were actually in The City.
Hackney Council released coronavirus advice to parents and carers yesterday, with guidance on how to slow the spread of the disease, and are working with PHE and the NHS in an effort to control the risk of the virus.
Croydon
The fifth person to die of the virus in the UK today was in St Helier Hospital in Carshalton, not far from Croydon.
A designated Coronavirus pod has been set up at Croydon University Hospital as a way to test potential cases, though none have been confirmed so far.
Croydon’s council and health services are managing their response to the virus by holding meetings twice a week, which will be attended by the Clinical Commissioning Group (CGG).
Lewisham
Three cases have been confirmed in Lewisham and one in Bromley, but specific details of the cases have not been made public.
Seven Goldsmiths students living in Chesterman House, student accommodation, are continuing to self-isolate after it was confirmed that a visiting guest had tested positive. The self-isolating students are being given support, meals and essentials by the university
Goldsmiths is working closely with PHE and continues to stay open as normal.
In a statement, Goldsmiths said: “We know people across campus are concerned they may be at risk from the Chesterman House case but unless you are contacted by a health professional, PHE assures us you are not at any higher risk of infection and that Goldsmiths does not currently need to take any further public health actions such as deep cleaning or building closures.”
Public Health England and Tower Hamlets Council are advising people to wash their hands more often and for longer than usual and to avoid touching surfaces and objects on public transport to reduce the risk of the infection spreading.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Jenny Harries said today that the UK will soon begin to see its coronavirus cases peak in the same way that China has. “If you have a new disease, the normal thing is, it will take off gradually. It will rise very rapidly at one point and come back down again when it effectively runs out of people in the population to infect.”
British Airways have cancelled all flights to and from Italy today as the country goes into lockdown. Airports around Europe are bracing themselves for an expected 187 million drop in passengers this year due to the virus.
