LONDON (AP) — The U.K. reported a sharp increase in coronavirus-related deaths Thursday as the National Health Service announced it was building temporary structures at hospitals in England to prepare for a possible surge of patients infected with the highly transmissible omicron variant.
The government reported 332 deaths, the highest figure since March 2. Public health officials cautioned that the number included a backlog of cases that stemmed from incomplete reporting during the Christmas holiday period.
The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 jumped to 11,898, up 44% from a week earlier.
While the figures are the highest in almost 10 months, they are still far below the peaks reported last January, when most people were unvaccinated.