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Bolton has entered a coronavirus red alert as the number of new infections continues to rise dramatically, according to initial data.
The rate of Covid-19 cases in the city is projected to reach 55.9 per 100,000 people, based on data forecast for the week ending Saturday (August 29).
It means that the infection rate has doubled week after week, ending a period of relatively low numbers.
The Government puts any municipality in the country on red alert, the highest level in force, when the rate exceeds 50 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
The total, provided by Public Health England, is currently a forecast, but with 38 people testing positive for the disease on Saturday, the total number of new infections for the 7-day period in the district will have reached at least 161.
It means that in the week ending August 29, the municipality registered an increase in cases of more than 200 percent.
The latest officially confirmed figures, leading up to the week ending Friday (August 28), detail 44.9 cases per 100,000 people, just slightly below the rate of 50.
The government uses the alert system to monitor any potentially dangerous outbreak.
Oldham is the only other Greater Manchester municipality that is on a red alert.
Despite this sudden increase in the number of cases in Bolton, the city will be removed from local restrictions on Wednesday (September 2).
It would mean that people from the municipality can meet other households within or in private gardens.
But Bolton Council leader David Greenhalgh, who initially called for the restrictions to be lifted, has now organized an emergency meeting, scheduled for tomorrow morning, to discuss what he says is a “worrying” spike in infections.
In a statement, he said: “I have been in direct communication with council officials this morning about the worrying, sudden and unpredictable increase in positive cases in the municipality.
“Health officials are gathering current data to provide a comprehensive picture of an emergency meeting for officers and cabinet, scheduled for early morning, to examine the data in detail and see the implications.”
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