Young are urged to take extra Covid care
ALL Devon residents – especially those in their late teens to midtwenties – are being urged to make renewed efforts to reduce the spread of coronavirus following a large increase in cases in the county.
More than 300 new cases have been confirmed in the past two days – with 247 of them in Exeter – although a proportion of the cases have specimen date from last week due to the widely reported technical issue over the weekend with the dashboard.
Dr Virginia Pearson, Director of Public Health Devon, said that the rise in Exeter does require focused attention, but that it is still largely within the University of Exeter student population.
She said that the rise in nonUniversity student cases in Exeter mirrors similar increases across the county, suggesting little evidence so far of spread into city communities, but that she is asking every Devon resident of all ages, but especially the late teen to mid-twenties, to make renewed efforts to reduce the spread of coronavirus.
Current MSOA cluster maps, which cover the period of September 25-October 1, show nine areas of Exeter with at least three cases. New clusters of three in Heavitree West & Polsloe, St Thomas East and Mincinglake & Beacon Heath were added to the map today, with four in St Leonard’s, five in Pinhoe and Whipton North, seven in Middlemoor & Sowton, and then in the student heavy areas, 23 in St James’s Park & Hoopern, 31 in Central Exeter and 127 in Pennsylvania & University.
Further clusters of cases on the outskirts of Exeter include Cranbrook, Broadclyst & Stoke Canon (5), Clyst, Exton & Lympstone (6), Starcross & Exminster (4), with other clusters in Devon of Bradninch, Silverton & Thorverton (5), Dawlish North (3), Teignmouth South (4), Ashburton and Buckfastleigh (3), Tavistock (3) and Bere Alston, Buckland Monachorum & Yelverton (4). The cluster in South Molton though has dropped off the map.
Over the last three days, there have been 33 new cases confirmed in East Devon, 285 in Exeter, 14 in Mid Devon, nine in North Devon, ten in the South Hams, 21 in Torbay, 24 in Teignbridge, six in Torridge and seven in West Devon, with a further 110 in Cornwall and 62 in Plymouth – although with the data lag, many of the cases are from nearly, if not, more than, a week ago.
Dr Pearson said that while Devon has seen a sharp rise in the number of reported positive cases, the delay in reporting of the most recent cases nationally has not held up any local interventions around track and trace, although cases will rise.