There were five confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Surrey as of Sunday (March 8) as councils in the county continued to issue advice to residents about the infection.

Epsom and Ewell Borough Council (EEBC) were among the local authorities warning residents about the Covid-19 virus and how best to slow it's spread.

"We understand residents and visitors may have concerns about COVID-19; we are monitoring the situation closely and coordinating with Public Health England (PHE) and a Surrey-wide public sector network, comprising councils, the NHS and emergency services," a spokesperson for EEBC said.

"We would like to reassure you that PHE and the NHS are well-prepared to deal with coronavirus.

"The priority is to safeguard local communities which sometimes involves taking preventative measures to help reduce the risk of further cases.

"The NHS has expert teams of highly-trained staff and specialist hospital units around the country ready to receive and care for any patients with any highly infectious disease," they added.

Meanwhile, councils including Elmbridge, Mole Valley and Runnymede posted official government advice about the virus prominently on their websites to help keep residents informed.

As the Comet previously reported, the first confirmed case of the virus in Surrey was announced on February 28 in a patient at the Haslemere Health Centre.

PHE said this was the first case of Covid-19 transmission within the UK.

According to the government, 23,513 people have been tested in the UK, of which 23,240 were confirmed negative and 273 were confirmed as positive as of 8am on Sunday.

Two patients who tested positive for COVID-19 in the UK have died.

Epsom Hospital NHS Foundation Trust were contacted for comment.