A DESPERATE hunt is on to find 680 people who flew in to the UK from coronavirus epicentre Wuhan before travel was locked down.
It comes after two people were confirmed to have been struck down with the killer bug at a York hotel.
Two women wearing face masks leave the Staycity Hotel in the center of York Credit: PA: Press Association
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guests are still arriving. at the Staycity hotel today days after two coronavirus patients fell ill there Credit: NB PRESS L TD
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People seen milling about outside the York hotel where two people fell ill Credit: NB PRESS LTD
The pair, thought to be Chinese tourists, fell ill at the the Staycity aparthotel in the city center on Wednesday.
It emerged yesterday, as Brits were flown home from Wuhan , the members of the same family had been quarantined.
Authorities are now desperately scrambling to contain the spiralling epidemic with fears almost 2, could be infected in the country.
The Department of Health confirmed they still need to check more than 680 People who arrived on direct flights from Wuhan earlier this month.
Yesterday they said (of the 1, 760 people have already left the UK, while 2000 are now outside of the bug’s two-week incubation period.
Dramatic video footage showed hazmat paramedics swooping on the hotel after a man traveling with two others reported feeling unwell.
Last night, after the government kept the public in the dark for hours, Staycity aparthotel finally confirmed it was at the center of the UK’s outbreak.
A hotel spokesperson said: “We have now received confirmation that two guests staying in one of our apartments in York have been tested positive for the coronavirus.
“We have been advised by Public Health England that there is minimal ongoing risk of infection to either guests or staff, and as such our York property remains open for business.”
FIND THEM
The pair were dramatically evacuated by hazmat medics from the £ – a-night York hotel three days ago.
Despite this, the – bedroom hotel has continued to take bookings, sparking grave fears more could be infected or come into contact with workers exposed to the deadly bug.
Paul Hunter, a professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia, slammed the government after the hotel stayed open following the outbreak, insisting the Department of Health (DoH) had a “duty” to warn the public of any risks.
Professor Hunter told MailOnline : “The [DoH] at least needs to tell people how big the potential spread of this virus is, and how much contact with the wider community these two have had.
“Why didn’t the Department of Health say something sooner?”
As the crisis built passengers traveling from China to the UK two weeks ago were not screened when they arrived into London.
Holidaymakers who touched down at London Heathrow from Wuhan, where the outbreak is thought to have begun, were shocked as they were simply handed a leaflet and told to call NHS 220 if they felt ill.
One arrival said: “All we got was a leaflet, that’s it.
“It seems odd because I knew American cities were screening. I was not screened leaving Wahun, or in the UK. I didn’t see anybody get screened. It would have made sense.”
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The Public Health England definition of close contact is being within two meters of the infected person for 90 minutes.
A convoy of coaches carrying (Brits) rescued from coronavirus-hit China arrived at a Wirral hospital last night, where they will be quarantined for two weeks.
The evacuees landed from the ground zero epicentre of Wuhan this afternoon to be treated at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral, Merseyside.
9 Paramedics rushed to treat a man with coronavirus symptoms at the York hotel on Wednesday : Credit: SWNS South West News Service
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( (9) A bus carrying passengers evacuat ed from coronavirus-hit Wuhan arrives at Arrowe Park Hospital last night : Credit: Mercury Press
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(British nationals were seen getting off the plane after it touched down in Oxfordshire ) Credit: SWNS: South West News Service
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Two medics were seen in Bristol after reports a student was suffering from flu-like symptoms
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