THE coronavirus risk in Brighton and Hove remains moderate.

The city’s Healthwatch health group issued an update as the illness continues to spread worldwide.

It said the risk to people in the city remains moderate but “the risk to individuals remains low and the Government and the NHS are well prepared to deal with the virus”.

There have now been almost 80,000 cases of the disease globally with more than 2,629 deaths.

In the UK there have been nine cases of the virus, with five of the patients diagnosed being from the Brighton area.

They include Hove resident Steve Walsh, who was feared to have infected “at least 11 people” after contracting the virus on a business trip to Singapore.

The 53-year-old Scout leader then passed the illness on to several people during a four-day stay at a French chalet before returning to Sussex.

In a statement on February 11 he revealed he had fully recovered and said his “thoughts are with others who have contracted coronavirus”.

Several people who had come into contact with him, and the other four Sussex coronavirus patients, were advised to self-isolate by Public Health England and several medical centres were closed for deep cleaning after being visited by infected GPs.

Confirmed cases were taken to hospitals in London in isolation for treatment.

There have been no confirmed coronavirus cases in the UK since February 12 when a woman who flew into London from China was treated.

More than 6,500 people have now been tested for the illness in the UK, which has been officially named COVID-19, with almost 1,000 people tested since Thursday.

But other countries have seen sudden spikes in cases of the illness. There are now more than 600 people in South Korea with the virus and Iran’s health ministry has said it has 43 cases with eight deaths.

Italy has seen the biggest outbreak of COVID-19 outside of Asia, with the total number of confirmed cases shooting from three to more than 210 in the last week – five people have died.

British tourists in Venice have reported that people seem “on edge” as major attractions have been closed amid concerns over the outbreak. Venice Carnival was called off as a result.

Shannon Belvin from London said she had been advised to avoid a specific church because it was a “coronavirus hotspot”. The 22-year-old said: “I was on a tour and half the boat was wearing masks. I sneezed and got a darting look from the lady next to me through her mask, which was awkward.”