An Oxford woman with family in Toronto has spoken of her concerns about visiting the Canadian city which has been badly hit by the virus Sars.

Alison Barnes

Alison Barnes, 40, was due to visit her mother Sheila, 65, and brother Phillip, 39, for the first time in three and a half years.

But after the World Health Organisation warned that travellers should only make essential trips to Toronto -- as well as Beijing and Shanxi province, in China -- she is questioning whether to fly out for her three-week trip. The travel alert was lifted on Tuesday.

She said: "I was being very pragmatic about it and I didn't want to panic. I would possibly just have bought a mask at the airport.

"But then the WHO put out their warning and I thought about whether I should reconsider."

Miss Barnes, of south Oxford, grew up in the Toronto area after her family settled there when she was a child. She moved back to England 12 years ago, and is an NHS press officer.

She has not seen her brother since her last visit to Canada, and her trip in July will include his 40th birthday celebrations.

Despite the warnings, she was not overly concerned about her family's safety.

She said: "The only evidence they've seen of Sars is when they go to a hospital. All the staff are wearing masks and that's the only place it's obvious to them.

"I worry about my mother because she has circulatory problems and her health is not fantastic, so I worry that she's a bit more vulnerable."

She added: "On balance, I will take the sensible approach, and take Government advice from this end with what I'm told from Canada."