A TOTAL of 17,836 people have had Covid-19 in Thurrock, latest figures show.

It comes after Public Health England changed the way it recorded the figures from Friday, which resulted in the removal of more than 8,000 cases from the UK running total.

The number of positive cases reported in Thurrock by 9am on Monday (April 12) was nine more than on Thursday.

It comes after new figures shone a light on Covid-19 impact at Basildon, Southend, and Broomfield hospitals, where more than 850 patients are believed to have contracted the virus.

Overall, the rate of infection in Thurrock now stands at 10,231 cases per 100,000 people, far higher than the England average of 6,791.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases was 3,022 higher than on Thursday, with the total now standing at 4,373,343.

Thurrock’s cases were among the 385,492 recorded across the East of England, a figure which rose by 20 over that period.

Cumulative case counts include patients who are currently unwell, have recovered and those who have died.

NHS stats, from August 1 and March 21, show 854 people were thought to have been infected with Covid-19 at Mid and South Essex hospitals, while being treated for other conditions.

The highest number of such transmissions was recorded in January alone, when 298 people were believed to have been infected in hospital. The three hospitals cared for 6,272 Covid-19 patients between August 1 and March 21 - meaning 14 per cent are thought to have contracted the disease in hospital.

Only three deaths linked to coronavirus have been recorded in the past week at hospitals in south Essex.

The latest figures from NHS England show there has now been a total of 2,362 Covid deaths at the Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust as of April 6. That means there have been three deaths in the past week at Basildon, Southend and Broomfield hospitals - the first time in months the weekly death toll has stayed in single figures.

Government figures show as of April 8 there had been 34 positive cases, down from 36 on April 1.

Official figures from the council show that of April 1 there’s been 3,607 Covid tests carried out.