London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Feb 21, 2026

Coronavirus: Five Britons in French ski chalet catch virus

Coronavirus: Five Britons in French ski chalet catch virus

Five Britons have tested positive for coronavirus in eastern France, the French health minister has confirmed.

Four adults and a child were diagnosed with the virus after coming into contact with a British national who recently returned from Singapore.

The man returned to the UK on 28 January before being diagnosed with the virus himself on Thursday.

Meanwhile, a final UK repatriation flight with over 200 passengers has left Wuhan, the centre of the outbreak.

The flight is due to land in the UK in the early hours of Sunday morning, when passengers will be taken to a conference centre in Milton Keynes for a 14-day quarantine.

In France, the five Britons with the coronavirus - who were staying in the same ski chalet - are not in a serious condition, French officials said.

But the authorities are closing two schools next week, both of which are attended by the child with the virus, a nine-year-old boy who lives in the ski resort of Contamines-Montjoie with his family.

There have been almost 35,000 cases of the coronavirus globally, mostly in China. The latest infection is thought to stem from a man who became the UK's third confirmed case when he tested positive on his return to Brighton.

The Briton had stayed in Singapore on a business trip from 20 to 23 January, the French health ministry said.

He arrived at Contamines-Montjoie, in Haute-Savoie, on 24 January for a four-day stay, before returning to England on 28 January.

On his return to the UK, he is thought to have isolated himself at his Brighton home and called the NHS 111 number. After a positive test, he was taken to St Thomas' Hospital in London where he is being treated.

Public Health England also advised a student at Portslade Aldridge Community Academy in Brighton to self-isolate for 14 days, as part of their investigation into the same case of coronavirus. The school said it had been advised by health authorities that there was no need to close.

The Brighton man told UK authorities that he had visited a chalet in Contamines-Montjoie, prompting French officials to take the 11 Britons staying there to hospitals in Lyon, Saint-Etienne and Grenoble on Friday night.

The chalet has two apartments where two families were staying. A British couple and their three children, who are now resident in France, lived in one. The mother is in the UK at the moment and has been contacted.

Seven of their friends were staying in the other apartment.

Those with the virus are the father of the family resident in France and his nine-year-old son, as well as three members of the visiting family.

The nine-year-old boy attends the local school and has French classes at another school in St-Gervais. Both schools will be shut next week, and parents are being asked to keep their children under observation.

A crisis unit has been set up as a result of the new cases.

It comes as four members of the same British family were admitted to hospital in Majorca after contact with a coronavirus carrier.

They are being tested at the University Hospital of Son Espases in Palma.

The British family said they had been in contact with a person who recently tested positive for the virus in France, the government in Spain's Balearic Islands said.

Meanwhile, a British man transferred from a cruise ship off the coast of Japan on Friday after testing positive for the virus is said to be feeling well and in good spirits.

Alan Steele, from Wolverhampton, on his honeymoon with his wife Wendy, was among 61 people to be taken off the ship for hospital treatment.

She has been in telephone contact with her husband, and said in a Facebook post on Saturday that he was still feeling healthy.


What's happening globally?

The majority of confirmed cases worldwide are in mainland China, where the total stands at 34,598.

On Saturday, the death toll rose to 723 in China, including one American in Wuhan. A Japanese man also died in Wuhan with symptoms consistent with the virus.

Outside China, 288 cases have been confirmed in 24 countries, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), with one fatality in the Philippines.

The five new cases in France brings the total in the country to 11.

Elsewhere, Hong Kong has begun a mandatory two-week quarantine for anyone arriving from mainland China after 26 cases were recorded in the territory.

On Saturday WHO warned that "trolls and conspiracy theories" are undermining their response to the virus.

The Department of Health and Social Care said that 686 people in the UK have been tested for coronavirus as of Saturday afternoon, with three cases confirmed.

The two other UK cases - both Chinese nationals - are being treated at the Royal Victoria Infirmary infectious diseases centre in Newcastle.

UK citizens who travelled on two previous repatriation flights from Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the coronavirus, are in quarantine at Arrowe Park Hospital in Wirral.


What's the latest UK travel advice?

The Foreign & Commonwealth Office is advising against all but essential travel to mainland China and all travel to Hubei Province.

UK nationals have also been advised to leave China where possible.

However, the government is not advising against travel to any other country or territory as a result of the virus.

Some airlines, including British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, have suspended flights to and from China or revised their schedules.


What should I do if I suspect I have the virus?

The coronavirus causes severe acute respiratory infection and symptoms usually start with a fever, followed by a dry cough.

Most people infected are likely to fully recover - just as they would from a flu.

Anyone who has travelled to the UK from mainland China, Thailand, Japan, Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia or Macau in the last 14 days and is experiencing cough or fever or shortness of breath, is advised to stay indoors and call NHS 111, even if symptoms are mild.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Confirms Preferential U.S. Trading Terms Will Continue After Supreme Court Tariff Ruling
U.S. and U.K. to Hold Talks on Diego Garcia as Iran Objects to Potential Military Use
UK Officials Weigh Possible Changes to Prince Andrew’s Position in Line of Succession Amid Ongoing Scrutiny
British Police Probe Epstein’s UK Airport Links and Expand High-Profile Inquiries
United Kingdom Denies U.S. Access to Military Base for Potential Iran Strike
British Co-founder of ASOS falls to his death from Pattaya apartment
Early 2026 Data Suggests Tentative Recovery for UK Businesses and Households
UK Introduces Digital-First Passport Rules for Dual Citizens in Border Control Overhaul
Unable to Access Live Financial Data for January UK Surplus Report
UK Government Considers Law to Remove Prince Andrew from Royal Line of Succession
UK ‘Working Closely with US’ to Assess Impact of Supreme Court Tariff Ruling
Trump Criticises UK Decision to Restrict Use of Bases in Potential Iran Strike Scenario
UK Foreign Secretary and U.S. State Chief Hold Strategic Talks as Tensions Rise Over Joint Air Base
Two teens arrested in France for alleged terror plot.
Nordic Fracture: How Criminal Scandals and Toxic Ties are Dismantling the Norwegian Crown
US Supreme Court Voids Trump’s Emergency Tariff Plan, Reshaping Trade Power and Fiscal Risk
King Charles III Opens London Fashion Week as Royal Family Faces Fresh Scrutiny
Trump’s Evolving Stance on UK Chagos Islands Deal Draws Renewed Scrutiny
House Democrat Says Former UK Ambassador Unable to Testify in Congressional Epstein Inquiry
No Record of Prince Andrew Arrest in UK as Claims Circulate Online
UK Has Not Granted US Approval to Launch Iran Strikes from RAF Bases, Government Confirms
AI Pricing Pressure Mounts as Chinese Models Undercut US Rivals and Margin Risks Grow
Global Counsel, Advisory Firm Co-Founded by Lord Mandelson, Enters Administration After Client Exodus
London High Court dispute over Ricardo Salinas’s $400mn Elektra share-backed bitcoin loan
UK Intensifies Efforts to Secure Saudi Investment in Next-Generation Fighter Jet Programme
Former Student Files Civil Claim Against UK Authorities After Rape Charges Against Peers Are Dropped
Archer Aviation Chooses Bristol for New UK Engineering Hub to Drive Electric Air Taxi Expansion
UK Sees Surge in Medical Device Testing as Government Pushes Global Competitiveness
UK Competition Watchdog Flags Concerns Over Proposed Getty Images–Shutterstock Merger
Trump Reasserts Opposition to UK Chagos Islands Proposal, Urges Stronger Strategic Alignment
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis advocates for a ban on minors using social media.
Liberal Senator Michaelia Cash Accuses Prime Minister of Lying to Australians
Meanwhile in Time Square, NYC One of the most famous landmarks
Jensen Huang just told the story of how Elon Musk became NVIDIA’s very first customer for their powerful AI supercomputer
A Lunar New Year event in Taiwan briefly came to a halt after a temple official standing beside President Lai Ching‑te suddenly vomited, splashing Lai’s clothing
Jillian Michaels reveals Bill Gates’ $55 million investment in mRNA vaccines turned into over $1 billion.
Ex-Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's arrested
Former British Prince Andrew Arrested on Suspicion of Misconduct in Public Office
Four Chagos Islanders Establish Permanent Settlement on Atoll
Unitree Robotics founder Wang Xingxing showcases future robot deployment during Spring Festival Gala.
UK Inflation Slows Sharply in January, Strengthening Case for Bank of England Rate Cut
Hide the truth, fake the facts, pretend the opposite, Britain is as usual
France President Macron says Free Speech is Bull Sh!t
Viktor Orbán getting massive praise for keeping Hungary safe, rich and migrant-free!
UK Inflation Falls to Ten-Month Low, Markets Anticipate Interest Rate Cut
UK House Prices Climb 2.4% in December as Market Shows Signs of Stabilisation
BAE Systems Predicts Sustained Expansion as Defence Orders Reach Record High
Pro-Palestine Activists Cleared of Burglary Charges Over Break-In at UK Israeli Arms Facility
Former Reform UK Councillors Form New Local Group Amid Party Fragmentation
Reform UK Pledges to Retain Britain’s Budget Watchdog as It Seeks Broader Economic Credibility
×