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Lockdown ends with positive covid cases still on the rise

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Croydon woke up this morning no longer in covid lockdown, with some queues forming outside what are left of the shops on the high street, and with news that a vaccine for coronavirus has been licensed for use and will be rolled out within days.

With the first of three vaccines licensed for use in the UK, there is more hope of dealing with the virus

There’s even the strong probability that the local non-league football club will be allowed to play its first “home” match for nine months on Saturday, although it won’t be at their real home ground. But that’s another story…

The relaxation of restrictions by the government comes despite an increase in the number of hospital admissions in Croydon in the past week, prompting public health officials to call on residents to adhere to the new rules strictly and to continue to take great care to avoid spreading the deadly virus. “We cannot be complacent,” one warned.

Like the rest of London, Croydon has been classed as a covid-19 High Alert Level Area moved into Tier 2 when national restrictions ended at midnight.

In Tier 2, the Rule of Six applies again. This means you are able to meet in groups of up to six outdoors including in private gardens, providing everyone maintains a two-metre distance from each other.

However, you must not mix with anyone from outside your household or support bubble indoors, including in private homes, pubs, restaurants and places of worship.

Rachel Flowers: ‘We cannot be complacent’

Rachel Flowers, Croydon’s director of public health, said today, “Thanks to everyone’s hard work in sticking to the national restrictions, staying at home as much as possible and limiting their social contact, we are now seeing a gradual decrease in the rate of new infections.

“But sadly in the last week we have seen an increase in the number of people in hospital and tragically, more people losing their lives.

“This is because of the time it takes from the point of catching the virus to become seriously ill and this is the result of rising infection rates before the national restrictions came into force.

“This is absolutely a reminder of why we cannot be complacent.

“The data is clear – the only way we prevent the virus from spreading is by limiting our social contact with others. If we do not do this and allow case numbers to rise in our communities, we will see more of our most vulnerable residents becoming seriously ill.

“As we go into Tier 2, it is vital that we all continue to follow the advice on hands, face, space and be careful with our social contact. We must make these small sacrifices to protect ourselves and our loved ones.”

So, the advice remains:

According to latest government figures, up to Dec 1, the number of new covid-19 cases was up throughout last month

You can find more information on the Tier 2 restrictions and what they mean for you here.

Tiers will be reviewed regularly by the government. Over the Christmas holiday period, from the 23 December until 27 December, the government has announced a relaxation of the rules. Tier restrictions will resume following this holiday period. You can find out more about this here.

 


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