A man wears a surgical face mask in Cardiff city centre (Picture: Matthew Horwood/Getty Images)

A person in their 60s has become the first to die from coronavirus in Wales, Public Health Wales has said.

The patient died at Wrexham Maelor Hospital and had underlying health problems.

Dr Giri Shankar, coronavirus incident director at Public Health Wales, said: ‘The chief medical officer has today confirmed the death of a Welsh resident who had tested positive for novel coronavirus (Covid-19).

‘Public Health Wales offer our sincere condolences to family and friends affected by this loss. We can confirm that this is the first death in Wales from novel coronavirus (Covid-19) infection.


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Panic buyers emptied the shelves at this Asda in Cardiff (Picture: Getty)

A woman wears a surgical face mask in Cardiff city centre (Picture: Matthew Horwood/Getty Images)

‘The individual, who was in their sixties and had underlying health conditions, sadly passed away at Wrexham Maelor Hospital.



‘No further details regarding this individual will be released, and we ask those reporting on the situation to respect patient confidentiality.’

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Earlier PHW said a further 30 people have tested positive for coronavirus. The number of confirmed Welsh cases now stands at 124, with the Swansea area having the highest concentration, with 19% of the total.

Dr Shankar said: ‘We can confirm that 30 new cases have tested positive for novel coronavirus in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 124.’

He added: ‘We are working with our partners in the Welsh Government, the wider NHS in Wales and others, now that we have entered the “delay” phase. This is now not just an attempt to contain the disease, as far as possible, but to delay its spread.’

PHW said the residential areas of 12 of Monday’s confirmed cases were not yet available, but as of Monday the Swansea local authority area had 23 confirmed cases, Caerphilly and Newport had 14, and the capital Cardiff had 11.

More and more people are wearing face masks as the coronavirus pandemic spreads across the world (Picture Matthew Horwood/Getty Images)

Only the local authority areas of Denbighshire and Gwynedd in North Wales and Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales had not registered a confirmed case.

The Prime Minister is facing a backlash over his decision to keep schools open, with angry parents keeping their children at home and complaining that other countries were doing more to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Johnson’s spokesman said the scientific advice was that school closures were not a step the government should be taking at this time, but a growing number of parents are refusing to send their children to school.

In Anglesey in north Wales, Helen Wright was at home with her 10-year-old son and had asked his school to send her a home education pack. ‘I do not trust government guidelines or the government over their handling of the matter,’ she said.

In Doncaster in northern England, Suzana Ilieva has kept her six-year-old son at home since Friday, out of fear that he could transmit the virus to an elderly relative who lives with her family.

‘I think the government is irresponsible and for the sake of protecting the economy is damaging people’s lives,’ she said. ‘I made my own decision with my husband.’

What does self-isolation mean? Self-isolation means staying indoors and avoiding all contact with other people for 14 days, according to the NHS. It means no going to work, school, the shops or even to the park for some fresh air, in order to minimise the risk of passing on Covid-19. Public transport and taxis are a no-no and you shouldn’t have visitors over, even if you just stay at home. Anyone in self-isolation is advised to ask friends, family and delivery drivers to pick things up for you and drop them-off. You should put a sign outside telling people you are self-isolating and everything should be left on the floor outside your front door to avoid the risk of further infections. You should leave a sign outside your property if you have to self-isolate (Picture: PA)

Those who are self-isolating are still advised to stay away from their pets as much as possible and to wash their hands before and after touching them. If you live in a house share and have to self-isolate, the advice is to stay in your room with the door closed and only emerge to use communal kitchens, bathrooms and living areas if absolutely necessary. Who should self-isolate? The government advises anyone returning from Category 1 areas (Hubei, Iran, Italy and Daegu or Cheongdo in South Korea), to go straight home and self-isolate, even if they don't display any symptoms. Travellers should use the 111 online coronavirus service to find out what to do next. Anyone returning from Category 2 areas should self-isolate and call 111 if they have Covid-19 symptoms. You can find the list of those places here.

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