New record number of NI virus patients in ICU

This comes after a tragic weekend when 22 new deaths due to coronavirus were reported, the latest figures from the Stormont health department show.

Saturday was one of the worst days of the pandemic in Northern Ireland in terms of deaths, with 15 fatalities reported by health authorities.

That is the highest number of deaths reported by the Stormont health department in a single day during the first wave of the pandemic.

In the first wave, the highest number of deaths in a single day came on April 22 with 19 fatalities.

On Sunday, there were another seven deaths of patients who had previously tested positive for the virus.

Hospitals also remain under serious pressure, the figures show.

There were 396 coronavirus patients in hospital when the data was recorded at 10am on Sunday.

Of those, 55 were in intensive care and 41 were on ventillators.

The 55 people in intensive care with the virus is the highest number recorded since the pandemic began.

It is also equal to the total number of people in intensive care in Northern Ireland for all other health conditions combined.

The peak number of intensive care patients with the virus during the first wave was recorded as 51 on April 9.

Two hospitals were listed as being ‘beyond capacity’ when the figures were put together on Sunday morning — the Causeway Hospital in Coleraine and the Ulster Hospital in Dundonald.

The overall bed occupancy in Northern Ireland stands at 92%, with 2,658 of the 2,884 beds available across the health service.