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NORTHERN IRELAND HAS confirmed 934 new Covid-19 cases today, a staggeringly high number that is more than double any previous daily record.
By comparison, the highest number of cases in a day in Northern Ireland before today was 424, which was reported on Wednesday earlier this week.
Yesterday 259 positive tests were reported, 320 on Tuesday and 220 on Monday.
So what is behind today’s huge jump?
Hot spots
Derry and Strabane have already been subjected to stricter restrictions due to the high incidence of Covid-19.
Together, the city of Derry and Strabane have one of the highest levels of Covid-19 not just in Northern Ireland, but in the UK, with 323 infected per 100,000 in the last week.
Pubs and restaurants have been limited to take-out, delivery and outdoor food.
People have been asked to avoid any “unnecessary travel” to, from, or within the areas, and to work from home whenever possible and avoid public transportation.
Let’s take a closer look at the numbers
More individual tests were completed in Northern Ireland yesterday, which is represented in the figures released today, than on any other day this week.
A total of 12,886 Covid-19 cases have been recorded in Northern Ireland since its first confirmed case on February 27.
Since the Covid-19 outbreak in the north, 512,860 laboratory tests for the virus have been performed among 359,245 people.
The tests are carried out in two laboratories: HSC Trust Laboratory and National Initiative Laboratory.
On October 1, 50 people out of 634 tested positive at the HSC Trust Lab.
At the National Initiative Laboratory, which completed tests for 5,404 people on the same day, 884 tested positive for Covid-19.
At the HSC Trust Lab, the number of people who were tested on October 1 was actually slightly less than the number of people who were tested earlier this week – 634 individual tests were completed on October 1, 888 on September 30, 1,003 on September 29 and 655 on September 28.
However, although fewer individual tests were processed at the HSC Trust Lab, more people tested positive: 50 tested positive there on October 1, 34 on September 30, 31 on September 29, and only 17 on September 28.
Although there were fewer people tested at the HSC Trust Lab later in the week compared to the previous days, more people tested positive for Covid-19.
The number of tests processed at the HSC Trusted Lab and the number of tests that come back positive is relatively small compared to tests completed at the National Initiative Lab.
Most of the 934 confirmed Covid-19 cases announced today were tested at the National Initiatives Laboratory, where 884 people tested positive on October 1 out of 5,404 people tested.
But unlike the HSC Trust Lab, which processed slightly fewer tests on October 1 than at the beginning of the week, the National Initiative Lab processed tests for significantly more people than any other day before the week: thousands plus.
On October 1, the National Initiative Laboratory completed testing for 5,404 people, of whom 884 tested positive.
The day before, September 30, only 2,005 person tests were completed in the lab, and 225 people tested positive, less than half the number of tests completed on October 1 and about a quarter of the number of positive results.
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On September 29, the National Initiative Laboratory completed testing for 3,830 people and saw 393 people tested positive, and on September 28 it completed tests for 3,193 people and 303 tested positive.
The high number of confirmed cases in Northern Ireland this week may be an outlier caused by an increased number of tests at the National Initiave Lab, or it may be an early indicator of a worsening Covid-19 situation.
What happens next
Last night Prime Minister Arlene Foster said that any full lockdown in Northern Ireland should only be part of a comprehensive UK-wide approach.
Deputy Prime Minister Michelle O’Neill said that if a blockade was implemented in Northern Ireland, it should be in conjunction with a blockade across Ireland and the UK.
New local blockades in the north of England have meant that a third of the UK will be under tighter restrictions from tomorrow.
Liverpool, Warrington, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough will enter local closures tomorrow and households will not be allowed to mix indoors.
Local closures in Denbighshire, Flintshire, Conwy and Wrexham already went into effect in North Wales as of 6pm yesterday.
In Ireland, Dublin and Donegal remain under Level 3 restrictions, and NPHET recently recommended that no more than one home should visit any other home in any part of the country.
Last week, TheJournal.ie reported that restrictions in Donegal highlighted a lack of cross-border cooperation on Covid-19.
Although the increase in cases in Northern Ireland today may have been affected by a greater number of tests compared to earlier days this week, it comes amid increases in Covid-19 cases in other parts of Ireland and the UK and suggestions that any complete blockade, if any, is one – should be taken in conjunction with the two countries.
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