The first patients have been admitted to the NHS Nightingale emergency hospital in London, health bosses have said.

The facility, which was created to boost capacity during the coronavirus outbreak, is temporarily housed in the English capital's ExCel Centre at Royal Victoria Dock.

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The exhibition space, previously the host of Olympic events including boxing, juso and taekwando during the 2012 games, has capacity for around 4,000 patients.

An NHS Nightingale London spokeswoman said: “Our first patients have now been admitted to the NHS Nightingale London, as planned.

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“There is also treatment capacity available in other hospitals across London to complement the care being provided at the London Nightingale.”

Other new hospitals will open across the country in the coming weeks, with sites planned in Birmingham, Manchester, Bristol, Harrogate, Cardiff, Belfast and the NHS Louisa Jordan in Glasgow.