A further three coronavirus patients at the West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust have died, taking the number of deaths at the hospitals to thirteen.

NHS England has confirmed in a statement today that three of the 190 patients that died in England as of 5pm yesterday (March 28) were from the West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust.

This was not within a 24 hour period and the three patients died between March 22 and March 25.

The trust however will not be issuing a statement clarifying more details on the patients and which of its three hospitals this involves.

The three hospitals owned by the trust are in Watford, St Albans and Hemel Hempstead.

NHS England have said that among the 190 deaths, patients were aged between 39 and 105, and all but four – aged between 57 and 87 – had underlying health conditions.

Their families have been informed.

The first Covid-19-related death in Watford happened on the evening of March 9 when a man in his 80s died.

Today’s update from NHS England revealed the coronavirus death toll in the UK is now 1,228.

As of today (March 29) there are 282 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Hertfordshire.

This makes it the ninth highest local authority with Covid-19 cases in the UK.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is issuing a letter to UK households warning that the UK will not hesitate to “go further” with lockdowns and regulations if that is what scientific and medical advice indicates that is best to do.

In the letter he writes: "It's important for me to level with you - we know things will get worse before they get better.

"But we are making the right preparations, and the more we all follow the rules, the fewer lives will be lost, and the sooner life can return to normal."

When asked about the June timeframe for if the lockdown would end, Michael Gove said the length of the lockdown is not “absolutely fixed” and this depends on how compliant people are to the guidelines set.

But in Watford town centre, the area was deserted yesterday with many food chains, pubs and on-essential stores closed.

Follow our live-blog for more updates on Covid-19 in Hertfordshire and the UK.