A Norfolk hospital is asking people not to attend A&E unless it is essential and warning them to stay away if they have suffered diarrhoea and vomiting in the last 72 hours.

The Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King's Lynn today said pressure on beds had eased over night.

It came after a busy weekend, when operations were cancelled because of high demand on beds.

In a statement this morning, the NHS trust which runs the QEH said: The Queen Elizabeth Hospital King's Lynn is no longer on external black alert status with pressures easing overnight.

'The hospital does remain extremely busy and continues to request that patients consider other options before visiting the A&E department.'

The trust said it had been busy since the weekend, when waiting times in A&E were described as longer than it would have liked.

In a joint statement with the West Norfolk C,linical Commissioning Group, it added: 'The CCG works closely with the trust and the ambulance service to ensure that any patient who does have to wait in A&E is made as comfortable as possible and regularly monitored in a safe environment.

'We are working hard with our partner health and social care organisations to create more capacity in the hospital and out in the community that will allow patients to be treated quicker.'