Boris Johnson told every hospital in the England could be FULL by December as expert fears UK is overtaking SAGE project
BORIS JOHNSON has been warned that England’s hospitals will be full by December without more lockdowns, it is reported.
It comes as new data suggests Britain’s surging second wave of coronavirus is already out-pacing Sage experts’ “worst case” predictions of 85,000 deaths.
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A source told The Daily Mail ministers were warned “in clear terms” that hospital bed in the country will be full by December 17 if no further action is taken.
The source said: “They would have no choice but to turn people away, including additional Covid patients, people who have heart attacks, cancer, road accident victims – because there would be no beds to put them in or staff to treat them.
“There could be a repeat here of the scenes in Lombardy in Italy at the start of the pandemic: the sick put in operating rooms or corridors.
“Hospital admissions are forecast to go up slowly for the next few weeks but shoot up towards Christmas.
HOSPITAL ALARM
“People don’t realise that social distancing measures can mean only ten beds in a ward meant to take 20.
“And there is a finite number of trained ICU [intensive care unit] staff – you cannot do it without special training.”
A Downing Street source confirmed to the Mail that the Government had been warned hospitals beds could be full by Christmas.
The Mail understands the warning of no ward beds by December 17 includes the emergency ‘Nightingale’ hospitals.
There could be a repeat here of the scenes in Lombardy in Italy at the start of the pandemic: the sick put in operating rooms or corridors.
A source
Meanwhile, a leaked Sage document has claimed deaths could peak at around 800 a day by late February, with up to 25,000 people hospitalised.
The document, which was circulated through Downing Street in the summer, predicted deaths could hit 100 a day by the end of October.
But Britain’s seven-day rolling average of deaths is currently 230, with 280 people recorded on Thursday as dying and 310 on Wednesday.
The second wave would last until March or April, with “at least” 500 deaths a day between December and February, the alarming report found.
And new research suggests that there are around 100,000 new cases a day in England as the deadly virus rages across the country.
The report’s lead author Professor Steven Riley, from Imperial College London, said: “There has to be a change.
“The rate of growth that we’re seeing in these data is really quite rapid. So one way or another there has to be a change before Christmas.”
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The area, including Leeds, Huddersfield, and Bradford, will move into Tier Three – meaning pubs and bars will be closed with a ban on overnight stays outside of the home.
And 16 more areas in England are set to be plunged into tighter restrictions over the weekend, including in Oxford and the Midlands.
Huge areas from the Midlands, including Derby city, the whole of High Peak, Dudley and Staffordshire will move into the “high” Covid alert level.
Of that number, 34 are fighting for life in intensive care.