Three more Covid deaths recorded in Blackpool

A total of 46,329 cases had been confirmed in Blackpool when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated on March 25 (Friday), up from 46,159 on Thursday.

The cumulative rate of infection in Blackpool, which covers the whole pandemic, stands at 33,479 cases per 100,000 people, far higher than the England average of 30,804.

If one person tests positive for the virus more than 90 days after the first infection, two infection episodes will be recorded, according to the UK Health Security Agency.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 77,306 over the period, to 20,691,123.

People with a positive lateral flow test no longer need to take a follow-up PCR test to confirm the result unless they have coronavirus symptoms.

UK case numbers now include LFT results for England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

There were also three more coronavirus deaths recorded in the latest 24-hour period in Blackpool.

The dashboard shows 583 people had died in the area by March 25 (Friday) – up from 580 on Thursday.

It means there have been four deaths in the past week, which is the same as the previous week.

They were among 23,075 deaths recorded across the North West.

The figures include anyone who died within 28 days of a positive test result for Covid-19, and whose usual residence was in Blackpool.

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death.

The figures also show that more than half of people in Blackpool have received a booster dose of a Covid-19 vaccine.

The latest figures show 77,709 people had received a booster or third dose by March 24 (Thursday) – 58% of those aged 12 and over, based on the number of people on the National Immunisation Management Service database.

A total of 100,798 people (75%) had received two jabs by that date.

Across England, 67% of people aged 12 and above had received a booster.

Unlike at local level, the national rate was calculated using mid-2020 population estimates from the Office for National Statistics.