229 further coronavirus cases and two more deaths recorded in Newry, Mourne and Down

The number of coronavirus cases in Newry, Mourne and Down increased by 229 over the weekend, official figures show – and two more deaths were recorded.

A total of 66,425 cases had been confirmed in Newry, Mourne and Down when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated on April 4 (Monday), up from 66,196 on Friday.

The cumulative rate of infection in Newry, Mourne and Down, which covers the whole pandemic, stands at 36,564 cases per 100,000 people, higher than the Northern Ireland average of 36,441.

In England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, if one person tests positive for the virus more than 90 days after the first infection, two infection episodes will be recorded, according to the UK Health Security Agency.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 142,807 over the last 24 hours, to 21,359,681.

Free tests in England were withdrawn for most people in the country on April 1, meaning the reported number of coronavirus cases in the UK is likely to be an underestimate.

There were also two more coronavirus deaths recorded over the weekend in Newry, Mourne and Down.

The dashboard shows 257 people had died in the area by April 4 (Monday) – up from 255 on Friday.

It means there have been three deaths in the past week, which is an increase on one the previous week.

They were among 3,342 deaths recorded across Northern Ireland.

The figures include anyone who died within 28 days of a positive test result for Covid-19, and whose usual residence was in Newry, Mourne and Down.

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death.

Figures reported on a Monday are likely to be lower as a result of a lag in reporting deaths over the weekend.