Coronavirus: DPD parcel delivery firm staff in Oldbury test positive

Workers at the DPD site in Oldbury, Sandwell, are isolating after 19 tested positive

A parcel delivery company has been linked to a cornonavirus outbreak after 19 of its staff tested positive.

Workers at a DPD site in Oldbury, Sandwell, are now self-isolating, the local authority said.

Sandwell was recently named as an area of concern by Public Health England (PHE) after a rise in Covid-19 cases.

The council said the risk to the general public was low but it was working with DPD and had planned further testing of staff.

Further tests for staff at the plant are planned to "ensure all cases have been identified," the council said

The site, off Broadwell Road, includes a regional distribution hub as well as a local delivery depot.

Sandwell council said the risk of catching the virus from parcels was "extremely low" but the "situation remains very serious" in the area.

Dr Lisa McNally, the borough's director of public health, said the authority was "taking all the necessary steps to make sure employees who need to isolate are doing so".

Twelve of the 19 staff have tested positive for coronavirus since 31 July, the council said.

DPD chief executive Dwain McDonald said the safety of the firm's staff was "our top priority".