A Gwynedd Hospital dealing with an outbreak of Covid-19 is now caring for 39 patients.

When the outbreak occurred at Ysbyty Gwynedd, officials said 75 patients had Covid-19, of which 49 were linked to an outbreak at the hospital which had affected five adult wards.

Speaking yesterday, (Tuesday) Mandy Jones, nursing director at Ysbyty Gwynedd, said: “As of this morning, we are providing care to 39 patients with Covid-19 linked to the outbreak at Ysbyty Gwynedd.

“We continue to investigate each case and take appropriate action to prevent the spread of the virus.

“All patients with suspected or confirmed Covid-19 are cared for on designated wards and appropriately isolated.

“We are confident we have measures in place to ensure this incident will not pose a significant increasing risk in incidence rates in our local communities.

“Please help by only attending hospital sites if you have a scheduled appointment. Visiting remains restricted, except for limited circumstances.”

Meanwhile, some operations have been cancelled at the hospital.

Alyson Constantine, acute care site director said: “The majority of planned operations are postponed this week and next.

“Emergency surgery, diagnostic services, oncology and outpatient appointments will continue.

“This decision has been made to enable us to provide extra capacity on site due to the number of people being treated for Covid-19 at the hospital.

“Cancelling operations is not a decision we have taken lightly and we apologise for any distress and disappointment this has inevitably caused. The safety of patients and staff is incredibly important and it was necessary to make these difficult decisions to ensure this.”

Affected patients have been contacted directly by the health board.