November 13, 2020 10.39 am This story is over 19 months old

Warning over lockdown behaviour as Lincolnshire hits national rate of infection

Infection rate spiking in Lincoln, Boston and the coast
| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

Lincolnshire’s rate of infection is now in line with the national average, sparking warnings from the county’s health bosses.

The latest seven day average, from November 5-11, put both the England rate and the county at 253 per 100,000 people.

On Thursday evening, the Greater Lincolnshire region saw a record 873 coronavirus cases confirmed in a single day, with a record 33,470 across the UK as well.

However, North Lincolnshire’s infection rate of 350 and North East Lincolnshire at 632 continue to be far above the national average.

Lincolnshire’s director of public health, professor Derek Ward said the infection rate was concerning particularly in East Lindsey (360) and Boston (just over 300), though Lincoln was also back up to 320.

Professor Ward said there was no specific reason for the rise. “It is a mixture of different things, we’ve had some some outbreaks in care homes, we’ve had some school-based outbreaks and we’ve also got community based transmission across East Lindsey,” he said.

Lincolnshire’s cases up to November 12.

The figures could also include “last hoorah” type movements before the latest lockdown, finally showing in figures including people celebrating Halloween, going out for one last drink, or having one last meeting with friends and family.

However, he said: “We’ve got a few different working hypotheses, but basically it’s an overall increase across across our population.”

Professor Ward said one particularly concerning factor however was that the rate of cases in over 60s was quite high.

He urged people to comply with the latest lockdown guidance, particularly around non-essential travel.

“In East Lindsey a lot of people will be travelling up into North East Lincs, and one of the messages I’d like to get out is to remember we’re in a lockdown and that the government guidance is work from home if you possibly can.

“Looking at the numbers going up, I would reiterate to everybody that if there’s any way that they can do that for the rest of the lockdown, please, please, please consider doing that.

“Certainly, I would not be suggesting anybody from East Lindsey goes up into North East Lincs shopping or for other purposes, they don’t have to because that’s against the government guidelines anyway.”

Cases in the East Lindsey District Council area up to November 12.

It is hoped the impact of the second lockdown might begin to appear from middle of next week, however, Professor Ward warned that if Lincolnshire stayed at or above the national average, it was less likely that the county would come out into a lower tier of restrictions once the national lockdown ends.

A statement from East Lindsey District Council leader Craig Leyland also called on people to follow the guidance.

“If we all come together, we can help limit the spread of COVID-19, help look after one another and help to ensure we exit this lockdown period as smoothly as possible,” he said.