Two patients in England test positive for coronavirus
The cases were confirmed by Public Health England on Friday morning
by Jillian MacMathTwo patients in England have tested positive for coronavirus, Public Health England (PHE) has confirmed.
The patients, who are members of the same family, are said to be receiving specialist NHS care.
Chris Witty, Chief Medical Officer for PHE, said in a statement: "We can confirm that two patients in England, who are members of the same family, have tested positive for coronavirus.
"The patients are receiving specialist NHS care, and we are using tried and test infection control procedures to prevent further spread of the virus."
The cases are the first to be confirmed in the UK.
On Thursday evening, the World Health Organisation declared coronavirus an international public health emergency due to fears of the virus spreading to countries with weaker health infrastructure.
The new virus has now infected nearly 10,000 people in China - more people than fell ill during the 2002-2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak.
110 people boarded a plane chartered by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to be evacuated from Wuhan this morning.
Passengers included 83 Britons and 27 non-British passengers.
The plane is expected to land at the Brize Norton RAF base in Oxfordshire at 1pm on Friday.
Afterward, it will continue to Spain, where the remaining passengers will be processed by their EU home governments, the FCO said.
It is understood the British passengers will be taken to an NHS facility on the Wirral to be quarantined for 14 days.
They will be taken to a former student accommodation block in the grounds of Arrowe Park Hospital, where passengers will have access to the internet in order to contact relatives.
"It's welcome news that our evacuation flight has now left Wuhan," Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said.
"We know how distressing the situation has been for those waiting to leave. We have been working round the clock to clear the way for a safe departure. The welfare of those trapped and public safety have been our overriding priorities."