Coronavirus: Fifth person dies at Skye care home
- Published
A fifth resident has died after testing positive for Covid-19 at Home Farm care home on Skye
Five residents have now died at care home at the centre of a Covid-19 outbreak on Skye.
There are currently 57 residents and staff at Home Farm in Portree who have tested positive for the infection.
The home is run by HC-One which has said it is "doing everything" it can to keep residents and staff safe.
There have also been 10 deaths due to an outbreak at the firm's Mugdock House home in Bearsden in East Dunbartonshire.
The outbreak on Skye was announced last week, and an Army mobile testing unit has since been established on the island.
An Army mobile testing site has been established on the island
Care home operator HC-One said it has had to bring in staff from outside the island to work at the Home Farm site, as an increasing number of workers self-isolated.
During Prime Minister's Questions at Westminster, Ian Blackford, MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, described the deaths at Home Farm as "heart-breaking and devastating".
He said the number of UK deaths to the coronavirus were now the highest in Europe and second worst in the world, and urged Prime Minister Boris Johnson not to relax lockdown measures too soon.
Mr Blackford said any change should be led by medical advice and not the "politics of posturing", and also asked that people be reminded against any non-essential travel during the May bank holiday weekend.
'Clear messages'
Mr Johnson said the UK government had been working with the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish administrations to send out "clear messages" to the public on how to keep safe.
The latest death comes after the man who runs HC-One said his firm had "nothing to hide" over the virus outbreak.
On Tuesday Sir David Behan told Radio Scotland's Drivetime programme that his firm, which operates 56 homes in Scotland, has had Covid-19 cases at two-thirds of its sites in recent weeks.
Highland Council leader, Margaret Davidson said it was a very difficult and anxious time for residents, families and staff.
She added: "Skye is a very close family community who will be supporting and caring for one another and I just wanted them to know that the council and its partners will do all we can to help and support them at this time."