Coronavirus: US airports have 7-hour wait times for virus screening

Americans staying in Europe are allowed to return to States but will be rerouted via 13 designated airports

There were cryptic and confusing announcements in midair. Long lines to clear customs. And waits of as long as seven hours in crowds with other travellers.

As the federal government rushed on Saturday to implement president Donald Trump’s restrictions on travel from Europe, part of an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus, chaos ensued at some of America’s biggest airports.

In Dallas, travellers posted photos on Twitter of long, winding lines. In New York, customs agents in paper and plastic masks boarded a flight from Paris. And in Chicago, where travellers reported standing in line for hours, Governor JB Pritzker of Illinois tagged Mr Trump in a series of angry tweets about the long waits, saying, “The federal government needs to get its s@#t together. NOW.”

“They gave us water and snacks but no updates on how long or what stages we had to go through,” said Gabrielle Osterman, a college student who missed her connecting flight in Chicago after a seven-hour wait to clear customs. Ms Osterman, who had travelled from Frankfurt via London, said officials asked about her symptoms and took her temperature before giving her a mask to wear.

Paige Hardy, an American student who left behind her graduate studies in London because she feared a broader travel ban, said a series of confusing announcements in the air and upon landing in Dallas led to alarm on the plane late Saturday. She posted a video on Twitter of travellers being asked to raise their hands if they had been in mainland Europe. Because of the delay, she also missed her connecting flight.

“It truly felt like an apocalyptic scenario,” said Ms Hardy, who left many of her belongings in England and was unsure if she would be able to return.

The confusion at America’s international travel hubs came as concern spread about the coronavirus pandemic, which has been identified in more than 2,700 people in the United States and has prompted Mr Trump to declare a national emergency.

Hardy Williams works to disinfect areas of the international arrivals terminal at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on March 13 2020, the last day Europeans can fly into the US before a 30-day travel ban (Getty Images)

On Saturday, days after announcing restrictions on travel from mainland Europe, Mr Trump said foreigners in the United Kingdom and Ireland would soon be barred from travelling to the United States. American citizens, legal permanent residents and their family members under the age of 21 who have visited the European countries in the past two weeks are allowed to return to the United States, but airlines will rebook their flights to one of 13 designated airports.

Under the new screening rules, when travelers arrive at a designated airport, they are to be interviewed by a customs officer, who will also review the person’s travel history using a Homeland Security database. The officer will ask them about their current medical condition. If they don’t show symptoms, they will be asked to quarantine in their homes for 14 days. Depending on their symptoms and previous medical history, travellers could be subject to an additional screening by a medical professional at the airport. They could also be subject to a federal quarantine.

“At this time, we are working quickly with our partners to operationalise a plan which will outline where these travellers will be routed and what the screening process will be,” Marcus Hubbard, a spokesman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said.

The Department of Homeland Security referred an interview request about Saturday’s delays to US Customs and Border Protection, whose officials did not immediately respond. Chad Wolf, the acting secretary of Homeland Security, said on Twitter that he was aware of the delays and was working to add staffing.

“I understand this is very stressful,” Mr Wolf posted. “In these unprecedented times, we ask for your patience.”

At O’Hare airport, the process was clearly not working. Even local airport officials urged their federal counterparts to add staff.

Passengers onboard an airplane from Heathrow Airport London, in mid air, headed to Dallas react to new health regulation announcement concerning Covid-19 (@TURNTHEPAIGEH/Reuters)

Muhammad Hamda, a Florida resident who had been visiting relatives in France, said it took him more than five hours to get through customs in Chicago. He said airport workers provided water and snacks, but he was annoyed because the delay caused him to miss his connecting flight to Tampa, Florida.

“It’s a big mess,” Mr Hamda said. “Now we have to spend the night at the airport until our flight home tomorrow morning.”

Tim Clancy landed in Chicago on Saturday evening after returning from a study program in Greece. Mr Clancy said he had been waiting in line for nearly three hours and still had a long way to go. He was surrounded by hundreds of other passengers also waiting to get their temperatures taken.

“I’m not sure what this is doing to curb any coronavirus,” Mr Clancy said in a phone interview while he waited. “If anyone had it, it would spread to everyone around with so many people jammed in such close quarters.”

The New York Times