The number of new Covid-19 cases is continuing to rise across Greater Manchester, according to the latest figures. All 10 boroughs have seen a rise in cases, but infection rates remain below the national average.
The number of people needing hospital treatment for Covid has also risen by nearly 40 per cent across the region with a slight rise in the number of people dying from coronavirus in the latest round of figures. Trafford is the borough recording the highest infection rate in the region.
There were 2,028 positive Covid-19 tests in Trafford for the week ending March 24, which is 270 more than the previous 7 days. This is a rise of 15 per cent for the borough which now has an infection rate just below England as a whole at 853.6 positive cases per 100,000 residents. England's average infection rate is 880.5 per 100,000.
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Stockport also saw a slight rise in cases in the seven days to March 24. There were 2340 positive tests over the last week in Stockport, which is 169 more than in the previous week. This is up eight per cent and the latest infection rate is 795.4 cases per 100,000 people.
Tameside and Wigan both saw a significant rise in positive cases in the last week. I n Tameside, the latest infection rate is 672.3 cases per 100,000 people, a rise of 32 per cent. Wigan's latest infection rate in Wigan is 630.5 cases per 100,000 people, up 39 per cent week-on-week, which is the largest rise in the whole of Greater Manchester.
There were 1,651 positive cases of Covid-19 in Salford in the week ending March 24, 358 more than the previous week. This gives the borough an infection rate of 628.5 new cases per 100,000 residents, a rise of 28 per cent.
Bury also saw a more than 20 per cent jump in cases in the latest round of figures. The coronavirus infection rate in the borough is now 619.8 cases per 100,000 people, a 21 per cent increase compared to the previous seven days.
The infection rate rise in Manchester was smaller compared to the other nine GM boroughs. Manchester recorded 3,165 positive Covid-19 tests over the seven-day period to March 24, 376 more than the previous week. This is a rise of 13 per cent with the infection rate now 569.5 per 100,000 people.
Bolton and Rochdale both saw significant increases in positive Covid-19 cases in the latest figures. In Bolton, the number of cases is up by 36 per cent compared to the previous week - leaving the infection rate at 489.2 cases per 100,000 population. In Rochdale the latest infection rate here is 471.3 cases per 100,000 - a rise of 32 per cent.
The lowest Covid-19 infection rate in the region is in Oldham. The borough recorded 1,067 positive Covid-19 tests in the week ending March 24, 207 more than the previous 7 days, equalling an infection rate of 449.0 cases per 100,000 people. This is up by 24 per cent week-on-week
Hospital admissions are also continuing to rise. In the week ending on March 20, a total of 567 patients were admitted to Greater Manchester hospitals with Covid-19, a rise of 38 per cent. On March 22, there were 14 Mechanical Ventilation (MV) beds occupied by Covid patients in, four more than a week earlier.
This has resulted in a small increase in the number of people dying from coronavirus. In the week ending March 24, a total of 22 people died within 28 days of a positive Covid test across Greater Manchester, two more than the week before. A total of 8,849 people have died from Covid in the region across the pandemic.
