The death is the first in Britain where they're now at 116 confirmed cases.

The chief medical officer says the UK is preparing to move from the contain into the delay phase of dealing with the outbreak.

The second phase means that measures to tackle it will now be ramped up.

Our health and social care correspondent Victoria McDonald has this report.

Since the first cases of covered 19 were found in the UK, it was inevitable there would be some deaths yet still came as a shock late this afternoon, the royal barks.

The hospital said that a patient has died.

In a statement, they said, Sadly, we can confirm an older patient with underlying health conditions has died.

The patient has previously been in and out of hospital for non corona virus reasons, but on this occasion was admitted on last night tested positive for Corona virus.

The family has been informed and our thoughts are with them, at this difficult time, our sympathies very much with the victim and their family.

But the situation is pretty much as it has bean in the sense that we're still Sam in the in the contained phase, though now our scientists, medical advisers are making preparations for the delay.

Faith.

Only this week, the N Hs told all 135 acute hospital trusts in England to routinely test anyone in intensive care units who had a breathing problem.

This patient is believed to have contracted the virus in England, and contact tracing is already underway.

Wth e evidence so far in this global epidemic is that the elderly with underlying health conditions, are at higher risk of dying from covered 19.

Like many care homes, Nightingale, Hammerson and south London is already putting in place contingency plans.

At the moment, we are mainly focusing on the prevention off the off.

Any kindof spread or outbreak way are speaking with residents, relatives and no other visitors off the care home to prompt them to wash their hands with soap and water as the most effective way of preventing the spread of coronavirus or any other sort of fires staff were indeed being shown how to wash their hands today and under ultraviolet light also shown just how difficult it is to remove all the germs.

You're your nail like anywhere.

Corona Virus is making headline news.

I am concerned, but you just have to put up with Did So Are you worried?

I know more than anybody else tell himself, My time's up.

That's right.

You worry for my for my young people, my sons.

It is obvious why care homes have to take extra precautions.

Elderly people are particularly vulnerable to this virus, so that could mean if it reaches epidemic proportions, that they have to take hard decisions.

That could include preventing visitors coming in or even stopping gatherings like this in keeping residents and their own rooms.

MPs heard today that half of all the Corona virus cases in the UK are most likely to occur in just a three week period, with 95% of them over nine weeks, raising questions about how the N hs will cope.

The bit of the system, which will come under pressure first, will be those conditions that require people to have oxygen and particularly to have critical care beds.

And that bit, I think, will come come under pressure at quite an early stage.

If we have a took high end off the range epidemic for this, why the general service's will be much less affected.

And I think, for example, Children service is because Children seem to be relatively spared from this disease, I think be relatively much less effective.

With cases in the UK now over the 100 mark, experts say there is evidence of community transmission that is, patients developing symptoms who have not bean abroad.

But the majority of the cases are still imported.

And tonight the N H s said, people returning from anywhere in Italy, not just northern parts of the country, should self isolate if they believe they have symptoms off the Corona virus.

Victoria McDonald with that report.

Well, joining me Now by Skype from OXIDASE professor Sean Griffiths, a public health expert, was in Emiratis, professor at Hong Kong University.

She co chaired the inquiry into the SARS outbreak in 2002 and 2003.

Thanks for coming on the program again, Sean, what is your reaction?

First of all to this very sad news that the first British victim has died of the Corona virus here.

But while it is sad news and our thoughts are obviously with the family, but if we look at what our expectations, we did expect the numbers of the cases of the disease to grow.

We did.

It's on as they grow.

Then, unfortunately, some people will not survive.

So it it's I know everyone saying This is a shock and I think the reason it's the shock is that we've been in a In a situation where the majority of cases in the country have come back from overseas, we've been able to trace where they've come from Andi.

That's sort of comforting in a way, because you can trace the pattern of disease when you can't treat could no longer work out where the disease has come from when we've got community spread.

But that's when anxiety grows on DDE, and I think that's this is symbolic of the growth and anxiety that we have may have more people in the community than we know about to have the disease, Justus, they found in other parts of the world.

Of course, we'll get onto out in a minute.

But this patient only tested positive last night on died during the course of the day.

Does that tell you anything in particular?

I know nothing about the clinical nature of foot or conditions of this patient.

So I really can't comment on this case.

So I didn't draw anything very much just from the facts that we've been told.

All right now we saw in Victoria's report there lots of elderly people who are very degrees of worry about this.

What should elderly Britain's citizens do to protect themselves from this?

The message is remain that we should all be very careful about washing our hands.

And that's all of us, not just the elderly people who who.

You know, I think I possibly come into that group as well.

And, you know, we need to take it more seriously that we do need to wash our hands.

Probably.

We do need to um, uh, t make sure we don't touch our hands and our eyes.

We need to take all those containment measures a seriously as we can.

On the same time, I think keeping healthy that also helps so that that helps to be keeping healthy.

All of us need to keep that message and to keep on with life as normal as possible.

What's being aware that obviously the viruses around?

So if we get symptoms to report these symptoms to 111 that will be my advice because you know this, that's that's that's such carry on.

Life is normal on the decisions about other things that will happen around us, will be taken by local authorities or by the government.

We mentioned Italy in the introduction there on the number of cases.

There really is quite alarming.

I think the infections over 3000 the numbers of deaths I think 150 in a given.

The increase in cases in this country is Italy.

Our imminent future.

Can we be where they are in two weeks from now?

Well, but these are questions that one can't answer.

It is a possibility.

It's probably not a probability is the possibility.

But I think the appearance of the disease in places like career or Italy have been that the cases have.

There's been quite a focus for the disease.

It's probably been in the community while before it's been diagnosed on S oh, it's got a grip.

That definitely happened in Wuhan that the disease got a grip in the community before it was made more widespread.

Knowledge of it was made more widespread and the containment measures were put into place.

So way have been doing a lot in this country in terms of raising awareness in terms of preparation, preparation and in the n hs preparation in other sectors.

So there's lots of planning that's been going on that the real question is, will the plans work when we need them on?

Do you know for the pressures?

Be too Granger River.

Thank you very much indeed.

Thank you.

Well, earlier, I spoke to Jeremy Hunt, the chair of the Health Select Committee and former health Secretary.

I started by asking, Now we have moved closer to the delay phase in dealing with the virus.

Is that an illustration of just how serious this is?

Absolutely.

Ah, nde.

It's not just that we moved into that second phase, but there is now very active planning going on for the final phase, which is called the mitigate phase.

When you know, we may have to get our heads around perhaps 20% of the population catching the virus, which is tthe e prevalence rate in Hu Bei province in China, the epicenter off the disease.

And so that's that would be huge in terms of the implication is not a prediction, but the preparations are happening for that kind of disruption on dhe.

That's why we heard, for example, that they're looking at allowing final year medical students to practice as doctors or foundation year one junior doctors to do things they wouldn't ordinarily be allowed to do.

So there is a lot of effort going into expanding the capacity of the N HS.

That does raise the question.

Are you confident if this worst case scenario does happen that the N H S can cope?

I do think the N H s is one of the best prepared systems across the world.

I think it came second in the global health security index of countries around the whole world.

In terms of preparedness on dhe, it's able to do things because of the centralized structures that other health systems find very difficult.

Like the decision this week, too.

Testa ll pneumonia patients, so there are some advantages, but the pressures will be very severe.

Yeah, and they're really critical pressure points, aren't they?

Because new Dicks and the chief executive of the N.

H S confederation raises a really big concern today about whether British hospitals have enough respect retreat resources to deal with everyone who might get this virus.

And he thinks they don't.

That's really worrying, isn't it?

That is definitely the biggest pressure point because, you know, this is a respiratory virus.

That is how it's spread on dhe.

You know, the people that support the part of the population of the most risk older people who have long term conditions affecting their breathing.

And so that's what the preparations are being focused on.

At the moment, the hospitals don't have the respect Richie Resources to deal with that.

That is a real danger for those older people who are most vulnerable.

Of course, on that's why they are looking at flexing the treatment.

I know there's an enormous effort at the moment to reduce the occupancy in intensive care units to prepare ourselves, but also I think there was honesty from the chief medical officer this morning that you know there would be an impact even on some urgent treatments.

But he was also confident that a system like the N HS is able to flex the care it gives.

One of the points he made was that the peak pressure on the N hs will be for about three weeks.

So there's a three week period when I think things will be very, very difficult on.

What I know they will do is to try and make sure that as much treatment has happened, a CZ possible happens either before that three week period or after it.

Timing is therefore absolutely essential.

There is a question about whether the N H s anyway is coping.

The national lawyer's office today warned that there are no not enough for nurses, and that surely is partly because of your failure.

Is Health Secretary to deliver on that?

Well, I don't think it's the time for sort of having a party political discussion.

I will answer that question very directly.

When I was held, Secretary I announced a 25% increase in nurse training places, and the National Ordered Office did say today that there's been a 5% increase overall in the number of nurses.

But it's probably not enough.

You know any health system when you have a pandemic is going to be under severe pressure on that critical issue off nurses.

How do you make sure that we get enough nurses given that post Brexit, given that we're in the middle of a Corona virus where countries will be desperately tryingto hang onto their nurses were facing a really difficult situation Here aren't way what we are on.

That's why the long term approach is obviously to train Maur nurses.

And that's gonna happen.

But in the short term, there are lots of things that you can do to relieve pressure on.

That's why the government's been talking about inviting back people who've recently retired.

It's a very short period of 3 to 9 weeks where you have that a big, big increase in pressure, and so there are things that you could do for a short period to relieve the pressure.

But the timing is going to be absolutely crucial.

Are we moving towards the situation we're seeing initially say, where you're talking about closing down schools?

Well, what Professor Witty said was that is now the live debate in government and it's a very difficult judgment call for ministers because on the one hand, although Children aren't the worst affected by Corona virus, they do appear to be capable off catching it and spreading it.

Weighed against that is that if you start closing schools, their mums and dads can't go to work, and that will include doctors and nurses in the N.

H s, who you very much need to be able to go to work.

So it's a very difficult judgment call.

We can see what happened in Italy and in Japan on.

I think that's what ministers are gonna be weighing up very carefully in the next few days, Jeremy Hunt, the former health secretary there.

The number of cases continues to rise across the world.

So what is the impact of covered 19 on other countries?

In Iran, officials have announced new measures to fight the spread.

Checkpoints are being set up to limit travel between major cities, and people are being urged to reduce their use of bank notes.

So far, 107 people have died and over three and 1/2 1000 cases have been confirmed in South Africa.

Is the minister of Health has confirmed their first case.

It's now the seventh African nation to report an infection confirmed cases a 38 year old man who had recently come back from a trip to Italy with his wife and 10 others.

A number of sporting events have been affected.

England Six Nations game against Italy on March 14th in Rome has been postponed because of the outbreak.

Organizer said the men's women's and under twenties contest would be played at a later date.