Two British Airways baggage handlers test positive for coronavirus

Two British Airways baggage handlers test positive for coronavirus amid fears a hospital patient in his 80s has become UK’s second virus death

• 116 cases diagnosed in UK and virus is known to be spreading around public
• A woman in her 70s last night became the first patient to die in Britain
• Hospital patient in 80s was also feared to have died from virus last night

By Rory Tingle For Mailonline

Published: 13:55 GMT, 6 March 2020 | Updated: 14:06 GMT, 6 March 2020

Two British Airways baggage handlers have tested positive for coronavirus, the airline announced today. 

‘Public Health England (PHE) has confirmed that two members of our staff have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus,’ BA said in a statement.

It came as a hospital patient in his 80s with underlying health conditions is feared to have become Britain’s second coronavirus death.

‘Public Health England (PHE) has confirmed that two members of our staff have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus,’ BA said today in a statement 

Professor Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England and Wales, said people can catch the illness by touching contaminated surfaces and then touching their face.

And the coronavirus may stay contagious on hard metal or plastic surfaces like door handles or rails on buses or trains for as long as three days, he added.

Some scientists have even suggested the virus may be more likely to spread on the hands than it is through the air. 

Speaking at a meeting with ministers in Parliament this morning, Professor Whitty said the virus would ‘largely gone by 48 hours and almost completely gone by 72 hours on a hard surface’.

He clarified that the virus spreads when somebody who already has it coughs or sneezes onto their hand, then touches something or someone.

Anyone who touches something the patient has contaminated is at risk of catching the virus if they then touch their face, he said.

The virus can enter the body through the eyes, nose and mouth, but not through the skin, Professor Whitty explained. 

Passengers wear surgical masks as they board a British Airways flight from Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport today 

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