THE number of people diagnosed with coronavirus in the UK as of 7am on Saturday has risen to 206 from 163 at 9am on Friday, the Department of Health said.
The Department of Health said more than 21,000 people had been tested for the virus.
As of yet, there are no confirmed cases involving patients from Dorset.
The updated figures come as US authorities prepare to respond to a coronavirus-hit cruise ship carrying British passengers off the Californian coast, after 21 people on board tested positive for the illness.
US Vice-President Mike Pence said on Friday that the Grand Princess, carrying more than 3,500 people on board, including 140 Britons, had been directed to a non-commercial port for testing.
Meanwhile in the UK, the public has been told to prepare itself in case "social distancing" policies are needed to help contain the spread of the virus.
On Friday, it was confirmed that a man in his early 80s had become the second person to die in the UK after testing positive for coronavirus.
The man, who had underlying health conditions, died on Thursday while being treated at Milton Keynes University Hospital.
On Thursday evening another patient, reported to be a woman in her 70s, became the first person in the UK to die after being diagnosed with Covid-19 while at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading.
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