Coronavirus: Four die at Royal Cornwall Hospital

The four people died at the Royal Cornwall Hospital over a five-day period

Four people with coronavirus have died at Cornwall's main hospital, health officials say.

The deaths at Royal Cornwall Hospital, near Truro, were reported in the round-up of Covid-19 deaths published by NHS England on Saturday evening.

The Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust said the "very sad" deaths had occurred over five days.

They are the first Covid-19 related deaths in the county. Twenty cases in total have been reported.

The patients were all over 70 with underlying health conditions, Cornwall Council said.

'Stay united'

Council leader Julian German said he was "deeply saddened to note the first deaths in Cornwall relating to Coronavirus".

He added: "I want to reassure residents across Cornwall that we are working closely with our health colleagues to support their efforts to manage coronavirus.

"It is vital that we stay united as a community and look out for each other - especially older residents and people with underlying health conditions - and that we follow the government's advice on social distancing and avoiding non-essential travel.

"Everyone at the council is working extremely hard to make sure the core frontline services that residents rely on the most can keep running while this situation is ongoing."

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