Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Monday, Sep 29, 2025

'Scary when it's on your doorstep': fear of coronavirus grips Brighton

The council says it is using ‘robust infection control measures’ after fifth case diagnosed
Coronavirus fears gripped Brighton on Monday as the number of people in the city diagnosed with the disease rose to five.

Outside County Oak medical centre, which was closed after a member of staff contracted the virus, a number of local residents spoke of their concerns.

“It’s scary when you look in the windows and see the people in the hazmat suits,” said 23-year-old Ben Swan, a local dog walker. “You hear about it on the news and it sounds like it’s in China, like it’s really far away, but it gets quite scary when it’s round the corner on your doorstep.”

He said he and his partner luckily had not visited the practice in a few months, but that the risk of catching coronavirus ran through his mind when he was travelling around the area.

Melanie Roberts, 48, saw the centre was closed from her house just across the road.

“It’s worrying that it’s so close. My family are fairly young and healthy so hopefully we’ll be OK but it’s worrying for older people, especially if it’s been in a medical centre where people have been in and out who aren’t well – that’s a bit of a problem isn’t it?” said Roberts, a dressmaker with two young children.

“I think people will take more precautions now ... I think it will have an effect on people now in social situations, in pubs and shops and things. Maybe not a week or two ago, but now I think it will affect people quite quickly.”

The third case of coronavirus in the UK was diagnosed in Brighton last Thursday, and the man has since been transferred to St Thomas’ hospital in London for treatment.

Over the weekend the number of UK cases doubled as four more people were diagnosed in Brighton – three men and one woman, all of whom had been in contact with the previously confirmed Brighton case.

However in many parts of Brighton, residents remained unconcerned by the latest developments.

In Hove, the Grenadier pub remains open after a man who was diagnosed with coronavirus was served there a few days ago.

There were about a dozen customers watching football and enjoying a pint on Monday afternoon. Although all staff who were on duty at the time the man was hosted had been told to isolate themselves, there were still plenty of workers behind the bar.

The pub’s spokesperson said: “We are following the advice and working closely with Public Health England who have advised us that there is minimal ongoing risk of infection to either guests or staff, and as such the pub remains open for business as usual.”

At Brighton train station, travellers also seemed unperturbed, despite the giant billboard displaying headlines about the Brighton “super-spreader” – a term used to describe the man who contracted the disease in Singapore and had since passed it on to a number of other persons.

John Stephen, 68, a retired magazine journalist said he was not bothered by the situation, but knew many others were. “There’s a Chinese supermarket down there and I saw some girls walking past covering their faces – it seems to bother other people, but I think a lot of it is racism.”

There were a couple of people wearing protective face masks, but the vast majority around the station were not taking any visible extra precautions.

“I’m not perturbed but I am a little concerned about the racism surrounding it,” Stephen added.

Brighton and Hove city council said it was working closely with Public Health England (PHE) to respond to the situation.

A council statement said: “The latest patients from our city have been transferred to specialist NHS centres, and healthcare workers are using robust infection control measures to prevent any possible further spread of the virus.”

It said PHE was prioritising speaking to those with close and sustained contact with confirmed cases.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
×