Health officials in North Yorkshire suspect that a vomiting and diarrhoea bug which affected 150 guests and 30 staff at a hotel was brought in by one person.

Following tests, North Yorkshire Health Authority has confirmed that the bug which forced Scarborough's Grand Hotel to close was gastro enteritis.

A virus called Norwalk caused a similar outbreak in the hotel in 1995.

A health authority spokesman said: "It is an airborne virus which tends to be carried in by people already affected.

Steam cleaning

"It is thought a guest actually arrived with it and it subsequently spread to other guests."

The hotel has been closed for steam cleaning until Monday.

Hundreds of guests who had been booked into the hotel for the weekend have been offered alternative accommodation.

They can stay in Scarborough, Llandudno, or Brighton.

Sickness caused by the bug usually lasts 24 hours but sufferers can remain infectious for a further two or three days.

One man still detained in Scarborough Hospital is expected to be discharged shortly.

The spokesman said: "It is important that guests affected are kept away from others and that staff remain at home."