Two Blackpool pubs shut after confirmed case of coronavirus

Both Garlands in Talbot Road and The Bridge in Lytham Road shut their doors at around 7pm yesterday (Sunday, September 20) after management were made aware of a customer who has tested positive for coronavirus.

Management said both pubs will be deep cleaned and all staff are booked in for coronavirus tests today (Monday, September 21) and tomorrow.

They said the customer who has tested positive is believed to have visited The Bridge, but due to the sites sharing management and staff, it has been necessary to close Garlands as well.

Speaking to the Gazette, management said: "There has been a positive test result reported, so as the staff and management work in both venues we have taken the decision to close both venues to deep clean both and all staff have booked to get a test today and tomorrow.

"It is believed to be here at The Bridge, but we don’t know which dates are affected, so we will pass all details to Test and Trace and they will contact anyone that may have been in contact."

Police visited Garlands shortly before 7pm last night in response to reports of the venue allegedly remaining open after it was alerted to a customer testing positive for coronavirus.

Officers told management to close the pub immediately and the evening's live entertainment was promptly cancelled and customers were asked to leave.

You can watch footage of the police visit in the link below.

Last night, both pubs posted the following message on their social media sites, informing customers of the temporary closure.

It said: "Due to being contacted over a customer possibly having a positive test for Covid-19, we have chosen to close the pub immediately.

"We will be having the pub deep cleaned by a professional company tomorrow (Monday, September 21) just to make sure the pub is clean and safe to reopen.

"All our customers and staff health are our top priority, thank you all for your understanding."

The spokesman later added: "All staff are already booked in for a test tomorrow."