Ludlow hotel believed to be at centre of Legionnaire's disease outbreak reopens

Water samples taken from The Feathers Hotel in Ludlow by Public Health England have come back clear and the bar and restaurant opened on Tuesday and as today the rooms are open to hotel guests.

But now Shropshire Council has opened a formal investigation under the Health and Safety at Work Act into the incident, which is likely to take a significant period of time.

The hotel was temporarily closed as a precautionary measure on September 13 after advice from Public Health England in the West Midlands and Shropshire Council.

Work has been carried out on advice from health specialists to identify any possible source of contamination and carry out remedial works.

A spokeswoman for Public Health England said: "The hotel has also ensured that the necessary procedures are in place to manage and maintain the water system at the hotel and that thorough and ongoing controls and monitoring will be carried out by the hotel on a regular basis.

"Final samples taken to verify that all necessary work has been effective, have come back as satisfactory."

Laboratory test results established links between Legionella bacteria found in water samples from the hotel plumbing and two separate confirmed cases of Legionnaires’ disease in guests, both from Merseyside, who stayed at the hotel.

The first case was diagnosed in April 2017 and has recovered.

The most recently diagnosed guest, Elaine Brown, 69, who stayed at the hotel in July, died.

Mrs Brown’s family have now instructed legal firm Irwin Mitchell to investigate the circumstances surrounding her death, and to found out if more could have been done to protect her.

The spokeswoman for Public Health added: "It is the duty of hotels in Shropshire to suitably manage and control the risks associated with legionella and Shropshire Council have provided further advice to premises in Shropshire on the necessary management and controls that should be implemented.

"Both Public Health England West Midlands and Shropshire Council have been working closely to ensure all necessary work has been undertaken and will continue to monitor the implementation of management controls and continue to take samples at the hotel over the coming months.

"Shropshire Council and Public Health England West Midlands are of course mindful of the sad death of the lady who had been a visitor at the hotel, and would like to offer their sincere condolences to the families affected by this very unfortunate incident.

"The health and safety of residents and visitors in Shropshire is a key priority and Shropshire Council will always strongly encourage employers to make health and safety improvements that protect their customers and staff."

The hotel was built in 1619 and is known as one of Ludlow’s best-known listed buildings.

No-one from the hotel wanted to comment further.