THE deaths of three elderly people at a Bury care home have been attributed to an "outbreak of pneumonia", it was announced today.

A fourth resident of Elizabeth House in Walshaw Road is believed to have died, though this has not been confirmed.

Staff at the home's parent company Churchlake Care Ltd also expressed their condolences to the relatives of those who have died.

A health meeting is understood to have been held today, attended by representatives of Public Health England, Bury Council and the care home.

The following statement has been issued by Churchlake Care: "We would like to offer our sincere condolences to the loved ones of residents that have passed.

"We have worked closely with health professionals and the local authority throughout and continue to support the residents, their families and colleagues through this difficult time.

"Public Health have now confirmed following testing that this was caused by an outbreak of a type of pneumonia. All residents are being closely monitored and supported taking the required precautions."

Pneumonia, an inflammation of the tissue in one or both of the lungs, is usually caused by an infection — most commonly, bacteria and viruses.

The Care Quality Commission initially said that the causes of death of three residents was believed to have been a flu outbreak. They later said they could not confirm the cause of death.

Bury Council told the Bury Times that all residents at the home were given the flu jab before Christmas, and all were vaccinated except one who was allergic.

A spokesman for Bury Council previously told the Bury Times: "One death was reported to us by the home as pneumonia, and the other two residents (while we do not know the cause of death) were being treated with antibiotics for respiratory symptoms."

Bury Council is due to issue a further statement this afternoon.

Public Health England has also been approached for a comment.

Elizabeth House received an overall good rating from the Care Quality Commission after its latest inspection in November 2018, which found the provider to be good in all five key performance indicators.