SUPPLIES of hand sanitiser have been wiped out in Greenock amid fears about the spread of the potentially deadly coronavirus.

Seven major retailers in the town confirmed they had completely sold out of the antibacterial hand gel.

Shoppers were faced with empty shelves with sanitiser unavailable at several stores in the Oak Mall - including at Savers, Bodycare, Bargain Buys, Wilko and Boots.

The product was also sold out at the Tesco Extra store in Greenock and at B&M.

A delivery arrived at Tesco yesterday but supplies did not last long - they had all been snapped up by 8am.

Staff at Bodycare said they were awaiting a delivery today.

One member of staff said: "We've been inundated with people coming into the store asking about hand sanitiser.

"One woman said she had been everywhere in the town looking for it but she couldn't find it anywhere."

The news comes as the First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that Scotland should prepare for a 'significant outbreak' of coronavirus.

After the first confirmed case was established in Scotland she warned more were likely in the "days to come".al.

On Sunday evening, Ms Sturgeon chaired a meeting of the Scottish Government's resilience committee and took part in the UK Government's Cobra meeting chaired by prime minister Boris Johnson on Monday.

Following the Cobra meeting, Mr Johnson said the spread of coronavirus in the UK was 'likely', but a plan has been agreed to tackle it.

So far, a total of 36 people have been diagnosed with the virus in the UK.

The NHS is advising everyone to wash hands regularly, cover their mouth with a tissue whenever they cough or sneeze and avoid touching their nose or mouth.