Coronavirus LIVE: Heathrow Holiday Inn shut for WEEKS as hotel made huge isolation centre

A HOLIDAY INN at Heathrow Airport is set to become a coronavirus quarantine centre in a bid to control the spread of the killer bug in the UK.

By Katie Harris, Political Reporter

Coronavirus: Expert discusses likelihood of outbreak in London

The Government has block-booked the Holiday Inn Heathrow Ariel to house anyone arriving in the UK who risks spreading the deadly virus but has nowhere else to go to self-isolate. People will also be able to stay at the hotel while their coronavirus tests are carried out and the results are processed.

It comes as 4,501 people have been tested for the killer bug in the UK.

Nine have come back positive for Covid-19, with eight of those patients now discharged from hospital.

Meanwhile, the death toll in mainland China, where the deadly virus broke out in Wuhan, is 1,770.

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A Holiday Inn at Heathrow Airport is set to become a coronavirus quarantine centre (Image: Getty)

10.20pm update: Coronavirus-hit cruise ship rocked by 99 new cases

At least 99 new cases of coronavirus have been confirmed among passengers on a cruise liner.

The Diamond Princess was quarantined in Yokohama nearly two weeks ago by Japanese authorities after a Hong Kong passenger tested positive for the virus.

Passengers, who have been confined to their cabins, are expected to have the quarantine lifted on Wednesday.

But the Daily Mail has reported another 99 passengers have tested positive for the virus.

8.25pm update: UK visas extended for Chinese nations amid coronavirus outbreak

Chinese nationals in the UK whose visas are about to expire will have their stay extended amid the coronavirus outbreak, the Government has announced.

New guidance issued by the Home Office to Chinese nationals says that if their visa is due to expire between January 24 and March 30, it will be automatically extended until March 31.

The Home Office said on Monday it recognised that some may be facing uncertainty over their visas due to travel restrictions.

7.40pm update: Russian state airline suspends some flights to China

Aeroflot said on Monday that it is suspending some flights to China due to lower demand amid the coronavirus outbreak.

From tomorrow, the Russian carrier will fly to Beijing and Shanghai once instead of twice a day until March 28.

Aeroflot also suspended some flights to Guangzhou on Monday and to Hong Kong, starting from March 1, but still will keep flying four times a week to each city.

All other major Russian airlines stopped flying to China on January 31.

6.30pm update: ‘Every scenario on the table’ in China virus outbreak - WHO

The latest data provided by China on people infected with coronavirus indicates a decline in new cases but "every scenario is still on the table" in terms of the epidemic's evolution, the World Health Organisation has said.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference in Geneva that China's detailed paper on more than 44,000 confirmed cases provided insight into the age range of infections, disease severity and mortality rates.

Asked whether the outbreak was a pandemic, Dr Mike Ryan, head of WHO's emergencies programme, said: "The real issue is whether we are seeing efficient community transmission outside of China and at the present time we are not observing that.”

5pm update: Virgin Atlantic ‘in discussions’ with Government over stranded Britons on cruise ship

Sir Richard Branson has said Virgin Atlantic was "in discussions" with the Government to see if they could help more than 70 Britons stranded on board the Diamond Princess.

The coronavirus-hit cruise ship is docked in Yokohama, off the coast of Japan.

Sir Richard took to Twitter in response to an appeal from David and Sally Abel, who are among those who have been trapped in their cabins for days.

Sir Richard tweeted: "@VirginAtlantic does not fly to Japan, but we are in discussions with the UK government and seeing if there is anything we can do to help."

Last week, Mr Abel appealed to Mr Branson to charter a special plane to rescue British nationals from the ship.

3.45pm update: University of Sussex student tests negative for deadly virus

The University of Sussex has said its student who was being checked for coronavirus has tested negative.

A spokesman said: "Recently a student on our campus was tested and has been informed they do not have coronavirus.

"The University is operating as usual and we continue to follow all the advice and guidance from Public Health England."

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More than 300 US citizens were returned after two weeks stuck on a cruise ship off Japan (Image: GETTY)

2.50pm update: Americans return to the US after two weeks aboard coronavirus-infected cruise

340 US citizens have returned back to the country under quarantine after spending two weeks stuck on a cruise ship with a large number of cases of the coronavirus.

The Diamond Princess cruise ship was docked in Yokohama, off the coast of Japan, after it was found a number of guests had been struck down with the deadly disease.

The 14 people who tested positive were isolated in containment areas aboard two chartered jets which flew from Japan to US military bases, the State Department confirmed.

One jet touched down in Texas and the other in California.

Passengers will remain quarantined for the next 14 days - the recommended incubation period for the covid-19 virus.

2.30pm update: Russian court orders woman back into quarantine after her escape

A Russian court has ordered a woman to be returned to a quarantine facility in hospital as a precaution against the coronavirus after she staged an elaborate escape plot and holed herself up in her St Petersburg apartment.

Alla Ilyina had been quarantined at St Petersburg's Botkin Hospital for Infectious Diseases after she complained of a sore throat when returning from China's holiday island, Hainan.

Ms Ilyina said tests had given her the all-clear for the coronavirus, however the hospital refused to release her.

She then drew a map of the hospital, waited for night to fall, short-circuted an electronic lock on her room door and fled. 

St. Petersburg's chief sanitary doctor sued Ms Ilyina for "jeapordising public health".

Her hearing took place in a courtroom with a germicidal lamp. 

Ms Ilyina's lawyer, Vitaly Cherkasov, said she would be appealing the verdict, and that although she was disappointed, she was also in good spirits. 

He said: "She has everything necessary in her room, even a television which she didn't have last time. She is satisfied with the conditions at the moment."

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More than 70 Britons stranded on a coronavirus-hit cruise ship could be flown home (Image: REUTERS)

2.15pm update: Police launch investigation into racist attacks linked to coronavirus

Police have launched an investigation following reports of five separate racist incidents linked to the coronavirus in two south coast cities.

A University of Southampton student said he had a stone thrown at him in the centre of the Hampshire city and was told: "Go back to your f*****g country."

Another student wearing a mask was called a "f*****g virus" while she walked home.

And a staff member from a Chinese restaurant was harassed by a man who referenced the coronavirus.

In Portsmouth, a man was allegedly asked to get off a bus by the driver because he was wearing a face mask. 

A Hampshire Constabulary spokesperson said: "There have been a small number of incidents of racial abuse. Any crimes perpetuated by hate and prejudice are completely unacceptable. We are working with Chinese community leaders."

2.00pm update: Experts fear drastic consequences for the global auto industry amidst the coronavirus outbreak

Industry experts have expressed their concern over the coronavirus potentially having a devastating impact on the global auto industry.

Many producers and suppliers in the car market are in the province of Hubei and its surrounding areas, which have been struck by the deadly virus recently.

A study by consulting firm Boston Consulting Group (BCG) has shown almost two million cars are manufactured at a dozen locations in Hubei alone. This equates to eight percent of China's total vehicle production.

The BCG wrote: "The auto industry stands out as one that feels the effets quickly and deeply given the crucial role of China.

"The auto industry will be affected locally and around the world.:

There are over 700 foreign and Chinese suppliers in the Hubei province, including in the sealed-off capital of Wuhan. 

Joint ventures between Chinese manufacturer Dongfeng and Honda, Renault and PSA have their headquarters in Wuhan, the virus' epicentre. 

Additional reporting Monika Pallenberg

1.45pm update: More than 70 stranded Brits could be flown home, says Downing Street

Stranded Brits aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in Yokohama, off the coast of Japan, have been contacted about the possibility of a repatriation flight.

Downing Street has confirmed those on board could be evacuated from the ship and flown back home. 

On Sunday, a US chartered plane flew home 340 of its citizens.

A Number 10 spokesperson said: "The Foreign Office is in contact with all British people on the Diamond Princess, including to establish interest in a possible repatriation flight. We are urgently considering all options to guarantee the health and safety of those on board."

The news comes after a British citizen stranded on the boat reached out to billionaire airline owner Sir Richard Branson, to ask him to charter a plane to evacuate Britons last week. 

1.35pm update: World Health Organisation delegates arrive in Bejing

Delegates from the World Health Organisation have arrived in Bejing in the latest response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Officials will also visit the provinces of Guandong and Sichuan in an investigation into the causes of the virus, and the search to find a cure.

A small advance team of three, including mission leader Dr. Bruce Aylward of the WHO, arrived a week ago.

WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said that the mission began its work on Sunday, with "an in-depth workshop and data review with the principal ministries" leading or
contributing to the outbreak response.

Additional reporting by Rebekah Evans.

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