TWO patients who were being treated at Carlisle's Cumberland Infirmary have become the first people in Cumbria to die from coronavirus.

Earlier today, Cumbria County Council confirmed that the grim milestone had been reached, saying that hospital bosses had officially reported the two fatalities - both as a result of Covid-19.

Both were patients at the Carlisle hospital.

The sad news came as the number of confirmed cases in the county rose to 47 - up five from yesterday.

The deaths underline the vital need for people to embrace protective 'social distancing' measures, said Cumbria's Public Health Director Colin Cox.

There are currently no further details about the people who died, though both died in the last two days.

"Clearly, it's a grim milestone in Cumbria's fight against Covid-19," said Mr Cox.

"It really should bring home to people that while this will be a mild illness for some people, for others it can be very, very serious.

"It's absolutely critical therefore that, even if people are not concerned for themselves, they should follow the guidance on social distancing.

"I am not going to be able to release very much more in order to protect the dignity of the people who died and the privacy of their families but I do believe they both had underlying health conditions.

"Both patients died within The Cumberland Infirmary."

As the tragic news was confirmed, the county's Assistant Chief Constable Andy Slattery repeated the plea for people to heed "social distancing" to slow the spread of the virus.

Staff at Cumbrian hospitals are already caring for critically ill patients, he said.

According to the most recent figures from The Department of Health, the UK's coronavirus death toll has risen to 177, with 3,269 people having tested positive. Of those, 39 died in the preceding 24 hours.

The highest number of deaths has been in London, with deaths there having now surpassed 50.

Meanwhile, the number of deaths in Italy yesterday overtook the figure for China.

The Italian death toll rose overnight by 627 - the biggest day-to-day increase in the country's four-week epidemic.

More than 4,000 people in Italy have died.

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the pandemic as the worst public health crisis for a generation while the Government's chief scientific advisor Sir Patrick Vallance said that the actual number of infected people in the UK could now be as high as 10,000.

He warned that many more people would die before their time - but Mr Johnson yesterday insisted that the advised social distancing and quarantine measures which public health officials are calling for can help the UK beat the coronavirus crisis, though at what cost is not yet clear.

Mr Johnson told said: "I believe that a combination of the measures that we're asking the public to take and better testing, scientific progress, will enable us to get on top of it within the next 12 weeks and turn the tide."

Cumbria Police have also appealed for people and businesses to limit social contact "to save lives".

Assistant Chief Constable Andrew Slattery issued a statement that underlines the why lives now depend on people taking the advice to socially distance themselves from others.

“This week the Government advised us to take some drastic steps to slow down the spread of Covid-19 which is having a major impact on our community both locally and nationally," he said.

“We were asked to cut down on all unnecessary travel and socialising and follow “social distancing” guidance and not socialise in pubs, clubs, cinemas, theatres, restaurants etc. These are huge steps that impact on our lifestyle. No-one wants to avoid socialising with friends and family, but the reality is we have to.

“We must all take notice if we want to reduce the spread, and impact of this virus to help our colleagues in the NHS to be able to cope with an increase in demand for critical care.

"Our hospitals are already caring for critically ill patients."

He added: "Many in our community feel they may not be affected by the virus as they are young, or fit and healthy but the Chief Medical Officer has warned that this virus can be life-threatening to young people too.

“We cannot and should not take comfort from the fact that victims are mostly the elderly or chronically ill because they are all human lives and we owe it to those people to limit our activities now. Please think about those vulnerable people who are scared and alone as they seek to take shelter in their homes...

“As the weekend approaches, I’d ask everyone to STOP and THINK whether their visits to the pub, restaurant or cinema are really worth it?

“We ALL need to limit our socialising and travelling now so that we can reduce the spread of the virus and save lives.

"That’s how serious this is. ”