As NHS staff were battling to save coronavirus patients overnight, thieves broke into and stole money from a cash machine at a hospital in northwest London.

“Our staff restaurant at Barnet Hospital is open as normal this morning despite someone breaking in last night to steal the ATM. We have no words! Police are aware,” the Royal Free London NHS Trust tweeted on Sunday morning.

It is understood the standalone ATM itself was not taken, but instead broken into and money inside removed.

When contacted by The Independent, the Met Police failed to provide information on the incident, with a press officer saying he knew “nothing about it”.

A Barnet Hospital spokesperson said: “At a time when our staff are all working incredibly hard to care for patients with Covid-19, it is hugely disappointing that someone has broken into the ATM in the restaurant.”

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Though it is unclear how many patients infected by Covid-19 are being treated at Barnet Hospital, there have been 81 confirmed cases of the virus in the borough as of Saturday morning.

A nearby hospital in the capital was earlier this week forced to declare a critical incident after its intensive care unit was overwhelmed with coronavirus patients.

Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow sent a message to staff on Thursday night warning that it had run out of critical-care space.

The hospital said it called on neighbouring hospitals for help to take on additional patients. The incident was stood down after 24 hours.

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The theft came hours after Boris Johnson urged the British public not to visit their parents on Mother’s Day, warning the NHS was in danger of being “overwhelmed” by the coronavirus outbreak.

The prime minister suggested families “avoid any unnecessary physical contact” and try to protect their loved ones by speaking over the phone or online instead.