UK hit hard by Delta variant, Covid-19 cases shoot up abruptly from 15K to 23K per day

New Delhi: United Kingdom, one of the leading European countries on road to recovery from the pandemic has been hit hard by the ‘fresh outbreak’ of deadly Coronvirus, specifically the Delta variant of Covid-19.

Daily coronavirus cases are on the rise and in just 1 week, the new cases have registered growth of 69.9%, reported The Mirror.

Spurt in daily cases, highest since Jan 30

According to the leading portal, UK has reported 22,868 more infections in past 24 hours – the highest numbers since January 30, when over 23,000 people were found infected with the virus.

On Sunday, 14,876 more infections and 11 Covid-related deaths were recorded while on Saturday, 18,270 people tested positive for coronavirus in the UK.

Delta variant dominates UK Covid-19 cases

Out of the total Covid-19 infections, Delta variant cases account for 99% of Covid-19 cases in the UK. The total number of confirmed Delta cases now stands at 111,157 — with 102,019 of these recorded in England, 7,738 in Scotland, 788 in Wales and 612 in Northern Ireland, according to a leading portal.

The Delta variant, first identified in India, now comprises 95 per cent of all sequenced cases in the UK, PHE said.

What’s more shocking that Delta + variant cases have also reportedly multiplied in UK. Days ago, when below 100 cases were reported globally, UK accounted for couple of them and today, more than 22 people have contracted this deadly strain.

About 117 cases of deaths in England so far has been confirmed as having the Delta variant. Of these, eight were under the age of 50. 6 of these 8 people were unvaccinated, while two died after more than 21 days of receiving the first dose of a coronavirus vaccine, the report said.

Lambda – is the another strain that has emerged in the UK and has become a ‘variant of concern’.

Positivity rate also jumps from 8.9% to over 12%

Amid the concerns of new Delta variants taking a deadly toll on UK residents, the daily test positivity rate has also seen marked increase from 8.9% to 12.6%. Earlier, the highest positivity rate stood at 14.8 per cent in Jan.

The data also showed that 44.45 million people have had a first dose of the vaccine and 32.58 million have had two shots. While 43,877,861 people have now received the first dose of a Covid vaccine in the UK, 32,085,916 have received their second dose.