Barra residents await mass covid test results amid 'escalating' outbreak

Residents on Barra were today awating the results of mass covid testing amid an outbreak that has affected around 1 in 10 of the Hebridean island’s population.

The Western Isles has reported a "serious and escalating" outbreak of Covid-19 among islanders on Barra and Vatersay

While no new cases have been reported in the past 24 hours during a “serious” outbreak of Covid-19 in the Western Isles, local ealth officials described the situation on Barra and Vatersay as “serious, and escalating” after 17 new positive tests on Friday brought the number of patients with the virus to 27.

No new coronavirus infections have been reported elsewhere in the Western Isles over the same period.

There are now more than 110 people in isolation on Barra and Vatersay – about one in ten of the islands’ total population.

Two patients have already been moved for further treatment after catching the virus.

All close contacts of people who have tested positive are being offered tests to try and curb the spread of the virus on the islands, which have limited medical facilities.

So far the virus has been reported mostly in people under 50 years old on the islands, but there are fears numbers could rise.

A “significant” number of people on Barra and Vatersay provided swab samples on Saturday, which have been sent to the hospital lab in Stornoway for analysis.

NHS Western Isles chief executive Gordon Jamieson said the tests will be processed over Sunday and results should soon be available.

“Please bear with us,” he said. “I know it is an anxious time for people who have been tested and are isolating.”

He urged all islanders to restrict interactions with others.

In a video posted on social media on Friday evening, he said: “This outbreak and the number of people affected – with over 110 people now in self-isolation – represents a significant proportion of the population on Barra and this is an escalating and serious situation.

“We must suppress and contain this virus as quickly as possible.

“Please limit your household contact and take every precaution you can to protect yourself as your community.”

The latest figures show 140 new cases of Covid-19 were identified across the Western Isles over the past seven days.

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