Manx National Heritage sites will close from Friday for the foreseeable future.

Sites which haven’t yet opened this year will not open until June 1 at the earliest.

The organisation which manages the island’s heritage sites said it has tries to continue as normal but that it is ’very clear that this pandemic is a major health emergency worldwide and the health of the Manx community has to be our first priority’.

A statement from Edmund Southworth, director of MNH, said: ’We are following closely all the advice from the Isle of Man Government Public Health team.

’We have also had feedback from the Department for Enterprise - our sponsoring department and we participated in a review session at the Palace Hotel alongside many colleagues from the tourism sector sharing their experiences.

’We also now have a better understanding of how many MNH staff and visitors have underlying health issues or fall into the "vulnerable" category. We have also considered the challenges of maintaining high standards of cleaning and hygiene in our heritage sites and other premises.

’In the light of these various factors we have made some fundamental decisions to protect the public and our staff.’

These changes include: Manx Museum and House of Manannan will close at 5pm on Friday to the general public and for the foreseeable future.

Other sites such as Castle Rushen, Rushen Abbey, Old House of Keys, Old Grammar School, Nautical Museum, Grove Museum, Laxey Wheel, Cregneash and Peel Castle will not open before June 1. Rushen Abbey will also no longer open to the public at weekends in March.

All MNH events and programmes have also been cancelled and it is in the process of contacting any customers or tour operators who have bookings for heritage sites and accommodation.