The huge surge is new coronavirus cases across Devon and Cornwall has not yet led to any noticeable increase in patients going to hospital.

Infection rates in Cornwall has risen tenfold in the last three weeks, with Plymouth tripling, Torbay doubling, and Devon’s rates six times higher than they were – although all areas are still nowhere near their peaks seen in January.

However, the rise in cases has not yet materialised into hospitalisations in the two counties – with three of Devon’s four hospitals having no patients in them, and only three admissions in the last week.

In Cornwall, the number has risen from one to four, with five admissions in the last week.

The latest Government figures, which give the position as of Tuesday, June 22, show that across hospital trusts in the two counties, there are nine patients currently in hospital in the two counties – up from four as of June 15.

There are five in the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital – up from three last week, with only two admissions in the most recent week.

But there still have been no patients in the hospital in North Devon since April 3, while Torbay Hospital has been free of patients since April 13 – the only day since March 30 it housed a patient.

Derriford Hospital in Plymouth is also currently free of patients, with the sole patient admitted in the last week having been discharged on Friday.

Cornwall’s two hospital trusts currently have four patients in them as of Tuesday – all at the Royal Cornwall Hospital Trust – one of whom is in a mechanical ventilation bed, the only patient in the region who is.

The figures show how many patients are in hospital following a positive test for Covid-19, but not whether they were admitted for Covid-related reasons, whether they were infected inside the hospital, or whether their admission was entirely unrelated but they happened to have Covid at the same time.

In terms of hospital deaths, the most recent was at the Royal Cornwall Trust on June 10 and at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital on May 9.

It comes as the latest data in Devon and Cornwall shows the largest volume of positive cases among young people and the younger working age population, 20 to 39 year olds.

Across Devon, infection rates in those aged 0-19, 20-39, and 40-59 have risen in the past week, but of those aged 60+, rates are not rising, while in Cornwall, there has been a small rise in those aged 60+ but the main rise is in those aged 0-19 and 20-39s.