Pub-goers and diners told to wash possessions after spy poisoned

Pub-goers and diners who visited a Zizzi restaurant or the Mill pub in Salisbury have been told to wash their possessions following the poisoning of a former Russian spy.

The precautionary warning has been made after trace amounts of the substance used to poison Sergei Skripal and his daughter were discovered on the table where the pair ate in the Zizzi restaurant, the BBC reported.

Skripal and his daughter remain in a critical but stable condition after being poisoned with a nerve agent on Sunday 4 March.

The warning has been issued to those who visited the venues between 1:30pm on 4 March and their closure the following day.

Dr Jenny Harries, deputy medical director at Public Health England, said: "The immediate risk to the general public remains low and this has not changed.

"Rigorous scientific analysis has been ongoing and we have learnt that there has been some limited contamination in both the Mill pub and Zizzi restaurant in Salisbury. Anyone who visited the Mill pub or Zizzi restaurant where the two affected individuals were, can be reassured that this limited exposure will not have harmed their health to date.

"However there may be a very small health risk associated with repeated contact with belongings which may have been contaminated by this substance. We therefore recommend that a precautionary approach is taken and advise people to clean the clothes they were wearing and any possessions they had with them."

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