BOSSES at East Surrey Hospital have been forced to close four wards after 15 patients showed signs of having contracted the winter vomiting bug, norovirus.
The return of the infectious virus at the Redhill facility has caused two wards to be completely shut down with two more having bays closed off with a total of 78 beds being affected by the latest outbreak.
It follows other major outbreaks in October last year and then again at Christmas as bosses were once again forced to close wards and ban visitors from seeing their family as they battled to contain the condition.
A new warning to residents has been issued urging them not to visit the hospital for at least 48 hours if they have been suffering from vomiting or diarrhoea.
Other affected wards have had their visiting reduced to immediate family from 2pm to 3pm and 7pm to 8pm.
Susan Aitkenhead, chief nurse at Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust said: "We work incredibly hard to ensure that infections can't spread from patient to patient, or ward to ward but all these efforts can be undone by someone who comes into hospital as a visitor while they are still carrying a bug such as norovirus."
According to the hospital, if the virus can be contained it can clear up within a few days but the affected wards will not be reopened until 48 hours after the end of the last symptom.
