First coronavirus case confirmed in Blackburn with Darwen

Dominic Harrison, Director of Public Health at Blackburn with Darwen Council, said:

I can confirm that Blackburn with Darwen now has its first confirmed case of coronavirus/COVID-19.  We are working closely with Public Health England and the local NHS. This is a male with a history of travel to Italy. He is already feeling better and did not attend a healthcare setting. There are no complications over the case. We are unable to comment further on the details due to the need to protect patient confidentiality.

We are amongst the later group of Local Authorities to confirm our first case. This is good news as it suggests we may be ‘behind the curve’ in the spread of the pandemic. We will not be announcing further confirmed cases; any more will be notified daily via Public Health England.

Although this is our first confirmed case we can expect more over the coming weeks. We urge the public to continue to follow the advice that has been issued to try and delay the spread of the virus. This includes staying at home for seven days if you live alone and have symptoms of coronavirus, however mild, or 14 days if you live with others and anyone in your household has symptoms.

Please continue to wash your hands regularly and thoroughly, for at least 20 seconds, covering your mouth with a tissue or sleeve when you cough and sneeze. Also clean regularly touched objects and surfaces.