An 11th-hour warning has been issued to two areas in England which are experiencing a dramatic rise in coronavirus cases. Residents in Pendle, Lancashire, and Oldham, Greater Manchester, were told to avoid meeting in groups indoors in back in July.
But authorities in both areas say infection rates have continued to increase raising the threat of local lockdown. In Oldham, the rate of infection has reached levels last seen during the height of the pandemic in mid-April.
The council said figures for the week ending August 8 showed 255 new cases in Oldham, compared with 137 cases the week before.
The seven day infection rate is now standing at 107.5 cases per 100,000 people in the borough, reports the Manchester Evening News.