Doncaster coronavirus death toll remains static as new figures released

The town’s death toll now remains at 224.

Over the last two days, Doncaster was the only place in South Yorkshire to record any Covid-19 deaths.

Earlier this week, national figures suggested Doncaster may be subject to a localised lockdown after a reported spike in cases.

But Dr Rupert Suckling, Doncaster’s Director of Public Health allayed concerns over the number of cases but urged people to be vigilant and to follow social distancing and hygiene rules.

The message has been repeated by Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and an emotional Facebook post by a Doncaster Royal Infirmary nurse urged people to continue to follow the rules when pubs re-open this weekend and not throw away the progress already made.

The nurse, named only as Julie, said: "Throughout the last three months I have witnessed things as a nurse I never want to see again.

"Like my colleagues across the NHS, I have no issues with people going to the beach, seeing their friends and loved ones,

"Just because the guidelines have been relaxed, it doesn't mean we can drop our guard and go back to how things were before March. The virus is still out there, localised outbreaks in cities such as Leicester are evidence of this. Please, please, please be sensible, enjoy yourself but don't ignore the guidelines.

The coronavirus death toll in the UK currently stands at 43,906