Staycity York apartment sealed off after Chinese national taken ill amid coronavirus concerns

A Chinese national has been taken ill at a Staycity property in York, prompting the group to put an apartment on lockdown amid coronavirus concerns.

The group confirmed that paramedics had accompanied a man from the property yesterday. He is understood to be undergoing tests at a local hospital.

Keith Freeman, chief operating officer, said: “We are following advice from Public Health England we have been advised that the risk is absolutely minimal and that nothing has been confirmed thus far.

"The health and safety of our guests and staff are paramount and as such the apartment containing the group’s belongings has been sealed off, after which it will undergo a thorough environmental clean and disinfection, as is company policy. "

The government's Department for Health and Social Care said it was unable to comment on individual cases, but that 161 tests had been carried out in the UK so far, all of which have been returned negative.

There are currently no confirmed cases in the UK or of UK citizens abroad, and the department has said the risk to the public is low.

Symptoms of coronaviruses include a fever and cough, which may progress to severe pneumonia causing shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.

Generally, coronavirus can cause more severe symptoms in people with weakened immune systems, older people, and those with long-term conditions like diabetes, cancer and chronic lung disease. Novel coronavirus (2019-nCov) is a new strain first identified in Wuhan City, China.

There are fears British tourism could be impacted by the coronavirus outbreak after flights travelling to and from China were grounded by British Airways yesterday (Wednesday).

Chinese visitor numbers to the UK have seen dramatic growth in recent years, with VisitBritain having predicted they would reach 483,000 in 2019, up 43% on 2017. The authority had also reported that Chinese visitors were some of the highest spenders, parting with an average of £2,059 per visit, more than three times the all-market average.