Marlborough’s historic Castle and Ball Hotel in the High Street has been closed because of a viral infection among some customers and guests.
Nigel Forrester, the manager, was not available for comment yesterday morning but the press office at Greene King, owners of the hotel, confirmed that it was closed and promised Marlborough News Online a statement.
“The hotel is completely closed because of a viral infection among the staff,” one member of the public told Marlborough News Online. “I went there for a meal yesterday and found that everything was closed down and there was nobody there at all.”
But in a statement to Marlborough News Online, Public Health England (PHE) and Wiltshire Council reported they were working with Greene King to investigate a number of reported cases of diarrhoea and vomiting, suspected to be Norovirus, in customers and guests at the 35-bedroom Marlborough hotel.
Dr David Hunt, Consultant in Communicable Disease Control from Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire PHE Centre said: “Norovirus usually leads to mild diarrhoea, vomiting and abdominal or stomach cramps that people recover from quickly. There is no specific treatment, but if affected, it is important to drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration.
“PHE is also working with Environmental Health Officers from the Council to ensure that appropriate precautions and procedures are in place.
“Since the reported cases, Public Health England is asking staff and guests who stayed at the hotel to answer a quick questionnaire in order to establish any common links between those affected. This can help identify how the infection spread.
Jenny Thomson, Public Protection Manager, Wiltshire Council said: “Since we became aware of the reported illness amongst hotel guests, Wiltshire Council’s Environmental Health Officers have been liaising with Greene King who had already taken the precautionary measure of closing the hotel to guests.
“The hotel management group has co-operated fully with the investigation, and are following the appropriate deep clean procedures recommended in a Norovirus type outbreak. Laboratory results from affected cases are awaited which will help to identify the cause of infection.
“The investigation is on-going but the council are satisfied that the risk is low and the hotel should be able to re-open to guests as soon as possible.”
A spokesperson for the Castle & Ball, subsequently told Marlborough News Online: “The safety and wellbeing of our customers and staff is absolutely paramount and after some reports of illness in one party of guests who had recently arrived, we made the decision to temporarily close the hotel. “We suspect the illness may have been a virus which is common at this time of year and currently circulating in the general population.”
She added: “The hotel has now been thoroughly cleaned to the highest standard and is planned to re-open tomorrow (31 January). Our team’s precautionary measures and swift approach to deal with the situation have been praised by Environmental Health Officers.”
The Castle and Ball, which was extensively refurbished two years ago, has a fascinating history. It dates back to the 15th century, with some of the original oak timbers pre-dating the Spanish Armada.
The building’s age accounts for some individual features including the split-level brasserie-style restaurant. The hotel also has a walled Beer Garden, which is widely used in the good weather for people to enjoy a drink and a meal alfresco-style.
NOTE: During the week 16- 22 January, Great Western Hospital lost 144 bed-days to norovirus. That was up from a nil return for the previous week. And it was well above that week’s national average for hospitals across England of 35.5 bed-days lost to the winter vomiting bug.
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