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Branches of DIY and trade retailer Screwfix say they are restricting the number of face masks people can but in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

Stores across teh country are running low on supply of masks usually used to prevent breathing in of dust and fumes during renovation or construction work.

As a result trhe shops are restricting the number of masks you can buy at one time, reports LeicestershireLive.

A number of branches have already sold out of Screwfix's cheapest range - the JSP Flexinet Disposable mask which sells for £2.99.

Even masks which sell at much higher prices, such as the Delta Plus Foldable Valved Mask for £21.99 - are also out of stock in most locations.

Some stores have limited supplies.

A Screwfix spokesman said they are restricting people from bulk buying face masks across the country.

They added: "We are prioritising our trade customers so that they can purchase face masks to provide protection against dust whilst working on site.

"Screwfix is a retailer and not a wholesale operator. We will not be selling wholesale quantities."

Buyers are reporting on social media that stores across the country are limiting the number of masks being sold to the public.

Grant Moreton said: "Went to @Screwfix to get a dust mask for work and all of them were sold out. I asked one of the workers and he said it’s because of the #coronavirus."

Graham Creesborough said: "Why are we UNABLE to buy FACE MASKS in the UK? I have tried 5 different chemists and all say they can’t buy any supplies?"

While Nicola Raistrick claimed that Screwfix is "limiting amounts of how many people can buy"

Nathan Evans from Wrexham added: "Dust mask shortage in Screwfix Trafford park cause some guy just come and bought all the stock."

The death toll from a strain of coronavirus - also known as Covid-19 - in mainland China has increased by 97 but its daily total has again slowed, health authorities said on Wednesday.

The overall number of deaths in the country, which has been largely closed down to prevent the outbreak's spread, rose to 1,113

The National Health Commission said 2,015 new cases had been reported over the last 24 hours, representing a second day of decline.

The total number of cases is around 45,000 globally.

In Japan, 39 more people on a quarantined cruise ship have tested positive for Covid-19, the country's health ministry said.

There are now 169 confirmed cases on the Diamond Princess, quarantined in the port of Yokohama, near Tokyo, among its 3,711 passengers and crew.

The coronavirus has spread to two dozen other countries, having only been identified late last year in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

The fatality toll has passed the 774 people believed to have died of Sars, another viral outbreak that originated in China.

And the total confirmed cases of the new virus vastly exceed the 8,098 sickened by Sars.

There are no licensed drugs or vaccines to treat it, though the World Health Organisation has convened a group of experts to fast-track treatment options to help slow the outbreak.

Experts, however, say it could still be months or even years before any approved treatments are developed.

In China, businesses are reeling from anti-disease measures that have closed shops, restaurants and factories and disrupted travel.

At least 60 million people in the central part of the country are in a government-ordered lockdown aimed at halting the spread of the virus.