Salisbury Safe for Residents, Visitors After Skripals' Poisoning - May

LONDON (Sputnik) - The UK city of Salisbury, where former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia have been poisoned with a nerve agent, is safe for residents and visitors, UK Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday.

"I can make it absolutely clear that Public Health England have said Salisbury is safe for residents and visitors. There is no need for anyone to take any additional precautions. Cordons are in place to protect the public, while decontamination work is carried out on the sites [where the toxic chemical is believed to be present]," May stated at the UK House of Commons’ meeting.

The UK authorities have begun cleanup work at nine locations in the city to decontaminate potentially affected sites. The process will reportedly take months to complete.

Last week, Chief Scientific Adviser at the UK Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Department Ian Boyd told Sky News that high levels of toxic elements from the nerve agent could still be present in several areas of Salisbury and be harmful to individuals.

READ MORE: Moscow Dissatisfied With UK Answers to Skripal Case Questions — Mission to OPCW

On March 4, former Russian intelligence officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter were found unconscious on a bench near a shopping mall in the UK town of Salisbury. UK authorities have blamed Russia for attempting to assassinate the Skripals with the A234 nerve agent.

Russia has denied having any role in the poisoning, pointing to the lack of evidence provided by London to substantiate its accusations. Moscow has also released a list of questions addressed to the UK authorities on the case.