A second person in Sussex is undergoing tests for a suspected case of the potentially fatal swine flu.

The unnamed patient walked into the Quayside Medical Practice in Newhaven yesterday afternoon showing flu-like symptoms.

When staff heard the patient had recently returned from a trip to Mexico they sent the patient home and arranged for them to be tested for swine flu.

The surgery in Chapel Street was immediately shut and the waiting room area was given a thorough clean to kill off any trace of the virus.

It is not known if there were any other patients in the surgery when the person with the swine flu symptoms walked in or how many staff were on site.

Last night the Health Protection Agency (HPA) was carrying out tests on the patient to determine if the illness is swine flu.

Patients visiting the practice yesterday found a notice informing them it had shut.

A spokeswoman for East Sussex Downs and Weald Primary Care Trust said it expected the practice to reopen today.

She said: “The place was closed as a precaution and the practice, which has received advice over the past weeks on what to do in a situation like this, immediately carried out their emergency protocol.

“We would urge people once again that if they do have signs of flu and they have recently been to an affected country, that they not come in to their GP surgery but phone from home instead.

”In a statement, the practice's business manager, Karen Ford, said: “There has been a suspected case of flu and we have temporarily closed the surgery.

“We have informed patients and are acting in line with guidance from the Health Protection Agency and the Department of Health.

“We are not making any further comment at this stage.

”The scare is the second to hit Sussex since cases of swine flu began to emerge in the UK.

Last week The Argus revealed how a Mexican chef working at the University of Sussex was isolated at home after he developed signs of flu following a recent trip back to his home country, where the virus first emerged.

Two tests subsequently carried out proved to be negative for swine flu.

A spokeswoman for the HPA urged people not to panic and to follow basic advice to avoid the spread of the virus.

Tips include covering your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, using a tissue when possible, throwing it away afterwards and washing your hands immediately.

Regularly washing hands with soap and water and cleaning hard surfaces can help to reduce the spread of the virus.

The news came on the same day another new case of the flu in the South East was confirmed, bringing the UK total to 28.

Most cases in the UK have been relatively mild but the death toll around the world has topped 100.

A free information line about swine flu, advice on viruses and preparations going on around the country has been set up on 0800 1513513.