Two more deaths recorded in Sandwell

File photo dated 21/12/2021 of a nurse puts on PPE in a ward for Covid patients at King's College Hospital, in south east London. The Government has been told to "get a grip" of personal protective equipment (PPE) stocks and contracts, as it was disclosed more than half of suppliers who provided items through the VIP fast-track lane provided stock that was not suitable for use on the front line. Issue date: Wednesday March 30, 2022.

There were two more coronavirus deaths recorded in the latest 24-hour period in Sandwell.

A total of 1,306 people had died in the area when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated on June 24 (Friday) – up from 1,304 on Thursday.

They were among 18,504 deaths recorded across the West Midlands.

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

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

A total of 156,564 deaths were recorded throughout England by June 24 (Friday) – up from 156,496 on Thursday.

Reduced testing means the reported number of coronavirus cases in the UK is likely to be an underestimate. However, the Office for National Statistics estimates that 1.7 million people had Covid-19 last week.