Facebook closes all London offices after coronavirus patient visits from Singapore

6 March 2020, 16:27

Facebook has announced it is closing all of its London offices until Monday due to coronavirus
Facebook has announced it is closing all of its London offices until Monday due to coronavirus. Picture: PA

By Kate Buck

Facebook has announced all of its London offices are closing until Monday after one of their employees tested positive for coronavirus.

A spokesperson told Sky News that the individual was a worker who visited the London offices from Singapore on 24-26 February.

The social media giant currently has three offices in the UK capital, with around 3,000 people working across them.

Facebook says it has been in contact with everyone who was in direct contact with the affected individual.

It is not yet clear if the person has since returned to Singapore.

The company also had to close its offices in Seattle, United States, after another Facebook worker was diagnosed with the virus.

Employees from the London office will need to work from home over the weekend.

A spokesperson said: "An employee based in our Singapore office who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 visited our London offices February 24-26 2020.

"We are therefore closing our London offices until Monday for deep cleaning and employees are working from home until then."

The current number of coronavirus cases in the UK stands at 163, with more than 100,000 reported worldwide.

Earlier today, it was reported that the second person in the country had died due to the virus.

More to follow...