Public health officials warn of increase in Covid-19 cases in Cumbria next week

An increase in the number of COVID-19 infections in Cumbria is expected next week. Public health officials believe there could be outbreaks associated with people returning from holidays abroad in recent days. Officials are also monitoring the situation in the areas surrounding the county which are seeing new cases increasing at a faster rate and which could have implications for Cumbria. Last week there were 33 new cases reported - that's up 5 on the week before - with the majority of new cases continuing to be in the 15-29 year old age group. Carlisle had the highest number of new cases, with 13 people testing positive, followed by Allerdale, with 10. Colin Cox, Cumbria’s Director Public Health, said: “New cases remain low, but we have seen several groups returning from holiday who were infected abroad and we expect to see them in next week’s figures. Unfortunately, needing to behave in a COVID-safe way doesn’t stop just because you are on holiday. “These new cases highlight the fact that in many parts of Europe we are seeing really significant increases in the infection rate. We know from hard experience that we are not immune to what is happening elsewhere in Europe, and alongside a slow but steady increase in the UK infection rate we really must be on our guard.