Now all passengers flying into Britain from locked down Italy are told to self-isolate for 14 days

tunisante March 10, 2020 Health

The British Government has been slammed as having a ‘half-hearted’ approach to tackling coronavirus as passengers returning from Italy will not be screened, despite the whole country going into lockdown.

Passengers arriving from the coronavirus-ridden country said there were no checks on landing in the UK, and British Airways, Ryanair and EasyJet are still flying passengers to and from Italy.

The whole of Italy was put under a strict lockdown last night as the government tries to battle the rapid spread of the deadly bug, which has killed 3,600 worldwide and has infected more than 100,000.

But despite Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte imposing stricter restrictions on travel, people returning to Britain will not be screened for the virus.

Former Cabinet minister Rory Stewart, who is running for London Mayor, criticised the British Government’s response to the outbreak.

Mr Stewart said: ‘All passengers coming from hotspots should be tested and quarantined. There is no justification for half-hearted measures.’

The Foreign Office on Monday night changed its advice to British travellers, advising against going to Italy unless absolutely necessary, and saying those coming from anywhere in Italy should self-isolate for 14 days.

It came as the UK death toll from the disease rose to five people from 321 cases, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned the UK will not be able to contain the outbreak.

A plane passenger wearing a face mask arrives at Gatwick airport on Monday as the coronavirus outbreaks continues to spread around the world

Passengers arrive back at Heathrow wearing face masks amid ongoing fears over the spread of coronavirus

Passengers arriving from coronavirus-ridden Italy said there were no checks on landing in the UK as British Airways, Ryanair and EasyJet are still flying passengers to and from Italy. Pictured: Passengers arriving in Gatwick airport on Monday

Two mask-clad passengers arrive in Gatwick Airport in London today after it was revealed that flights from Italy would still run

Jose de Arcos, 32, (left, pictured with fellow traveller Giorgia Grisot) said there were no temperature checks when he landed in Stansted from quarantined Turin today

Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte during a press conference at Chigi Palace, Rome on Monday where he announced extending coronavirus quarantine measures to the entire country

An empty St. Mark’s Square in Venice, Italy, on Monday as Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte said he is restricting travel nationwide to try to stop the spread of the coronavirus

A FCO spokeswoman said in a statement: ‘We have amended our travel advice to recommend against all but essential travel to Italy. The safety of British nationals is always our number one priority.

‘The advice is that anyone who arrives from Italy subsequent to Italian government decision should now self-isolate for 14 days.’

Public Health England said screenings would not be carried out, but ‘enhanced monitoring’ would see cabin crew being trained to spot symptoms and posters and leaflets in airports on what to look out for in an infected patient.

But Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said passengers need more information about what is going on in Italy.

He said: ‘With the Italian government set to extend severe restrictions across the whole of Italy, UK travellers need urgent information about how this will affect their plans.

‘There must be an improvement on the speed with which this information is provided, and there should not be a repeat of the confusion passengers experienced when the restrictions for Milan, Venice and Lombardy were initially announced.

‘Airlines must do the right thing and allow passengers, who will understandably not want to travel, to cancel for a refund, or rebook at a later date or on a different flight.’

The death toll in Italy increased by 133 to 366 yesterday while the number of cases skyrocketed from 1,492 to 7,375. The UK has confirmed 321 coronavirus cases and four deaths.

Return flights to Milan – the epicentre of the Italian outbreak – were still being offered by Ryanair, EasyJet and British Airways online as of Monday while Public Health England confirmed arrivals would not be put in quarantine.

PHE said cabin crew have been trained to spot and report symptoms – despite having no medical qualifications.

They did not expand on the nature or extent of the training. Coronavirus can be spread even if the patient is showing no symptoms.

In Salerno, Italy citizens lined up outside a supermarket to stock up on groceries after the national lockdown was announced

A queue of shoppers snakes around the outside of a branch of Carrefour in Pompei after the full lockdown was announced (left). Elsewhere in the country, people lined up in a mall as they tried to get into an Esselunga supermarket (right)

Two ferries which are seen almost empty passing each other in the Canal Grande in Venice on Monday after the country went into full lockdown

The Foreign Office and PHE confirmed that nationals returning from Italy will not be met by anyone at the airport in Britain, nor will they be put into quarantine or told to take a test for the bug. Pictured: A man wears a mask at Gatwick’s arrivals hall this morning

Two passengers wearing masks as they make their way through Gatwick airport as the number of coronavirus cases world-wide exceeds 100,000

What measures are in place to stop people leaving Italy spreading coronavirus in Britain?

Public Health England said all cabin crew are briefed on coronavirus symptoms and what to do if someone reports feeling ill onboard a flight.

The captain is to call ahead to warn of any sickness and a risk assessment will be carried out before passengers are let off the plane.

It is possible to transmit the virus without any symptoms.

A ‘bespoke poster for Italy’ will be given to travellers from the country to inform them of what areas are affected.

Information on symptoms and actions to take are provided to passengers.

This protocol has been in place for northern Italy since March 4 and will be rolled out for the whole of Italy by March 11.

Heathrow airport have ‘enhanced thorough cleaning processes and increased the amount of hand sanitisers for staff.

Following the announcement of the lockdown last night, panic buying hit the country and Italians flocked to supermarkets to stock up on food amid fears of a shortage.

Meanwhile, experts in the UK said the lockdown was ‘unprecedented’ and almost ‘certainly unsustainable’.

Professor John Edmunds, from the London School of Hygiene Tropical Medicine, said: ‘This will be a long epidemic and the appropriate measures need to be taken at the right time to maximise their impact, help ensure compliance and minimise economic and social costs.

‘These measures will probably have a short-term impact. However, if they can’t be sustained for the long term, all they are likely to do is delay the epidemic for a while.’

Paul Hunter, professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia, said: ‘The recent extension of Covid-19 controls in Italy represent one of the most rigorous country-wide control measures implemented in the last 50 years.

‘Whilst we have seen in Wuhan that such intensive social distancing can bring the epidemic under control, it is far from clear how long this may need to be maintained in the Italian context.

‘Unlike the situation in Wuhan where there was the possibility that the global epidemic could be prevented, Covid-19 is already spreading globally. So when the restrictions in Italy are eased there may still be a large number of cases in nearby countries that could lead to spread back into Italy.

‘Would this degree of restriction be appropriate for the UK? Probably not as we are currently seeing a much more gradual increase in numbers and these are already distributed throughout the UK, unlike the situation in Italy where cases were concentrated in a single region.

‘More rigorous social distancing measures are likely to be implemented in the UK over coming days or weeks as case numbers increase. But the timing of their introduction will be chosen to hopefully maximise the benefit whilst minimising the harm to British society.’

London-based bartender Matteo Aprire, 26, arrived into Gatwick on an EasyJet flight from Milan and said he was able to walk free from the airport without any testing on Monday.

A Venetian wearing a protective mask walks by children playing in a square on Monday as Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced a ‘national emergency’ due to the coronavirus outbreak

Anti-riot police officers standing guard in front of San Vittore prison during protests by the inmates over their treatment during the coronavirus outbreak in Milan

A pedestrian wearing a mask walking through the Swiss-Italian border during the outbreak of the coronavirus on Monday

Simone Farimon, who works in Kensington, south west London, said that Venice was completely deserted before he flew to Gatwick and no checks were made on him nor other passengers when he landed.

The 32-year-old marble salesman said: ‘There were no checks here, no checks where I started.

‘I saw some cameras here, and I am a little bit sure they are monitoring us on those, but nobody actually checking us.’

Jose de Arcos, 32, said there were no temperature checks when he landed in Stansted from quarantined Turin.

Mr de Arcos said: ‘There were temperature checks in and out in Italy but not in Stansted. We were in Turin and there were empty restaurants as it is a yellow area everyone is being cautious and staying at home.’

Giorgia Grisot, 30, who travelled with Mr de Arcos, said: ‘Both flights were half empty, we were only there for a couple of days, it was more family reasons I had to help there.’

Newlyweds Sam, 34, and Jasmine Welsch, 30, from Venice said they were expecting to be checked when they landed in the UK.

Mr Welsch said: ‘We were checked when we went into Venice, I was expecting a bit more when we landed n Stansted.’

In Manchester Airport, passengers reported no checks provided on landing at all.

Patience Amponsah, 24 said: ‘I was in Vicenza for seven months, there were no tests before I came back.’

Singh Manspreet, 31, said: ‘I was a bit worried but we were away from Milan, there were no cases where we were.

‘I am a little worried, I’m in the UK for ten to 20 days. There were no tests. People in Italy are very worried.’

In Manchester Airport, passengers reported no checks provided on landing at all. Patience Amponsah, 24 said: ‘I was in Vicenza for seven months, there were no tests before I came back’

Passengers wearing protective face masks are seen in Malpensa airport near Milan, Italy

Passengers in Malpensa airport, near Milan, waiting for their flight after British Airways said it is still flying passengers to and from Italy

Three British skiers have been hospitalized in Austria with coronavirus after contracting the most ‘aggressive virus strain’ in Italy

Three British skiers have been hospitalized with coronavirus in Austria after contracting a more aggressive strain of the killer bug, reports suggest.

Three men – aged 61, 44 and 49 – had been staying in Italy before going to a busy ski resort in Saalbach in the middle of the winter season.

The seven other people in men’s group who have not been infected remain quarantined at the VIP resort.

The rest of the hotel’s guests, its staff and owner all tested negative and have not been quarantined.

Saalbach is currently hosting the Alpine Skiing World Cup – a hugely popular event that attracts spectators from around the world.

Austria currently has 99 confirmed cases of coronavirus.

The coronavirus death toll in Italy increased by 133 to 366 yesterday while the number of cases skyrocketed from 1,492 to 7,375.

The bug has killed 3,500 worldwide and has infected more than 100,000.

Dr Richard Greil, who is in charge of the quarantine of the three skiers, said that all the cases seen in the region were coming from Italy, which he described as being ‘completely out of control.’

It is widely speculated that Italy has a stronger variant of the virus – known as the ‘L’ variant – but there is no concrete evidence for this.

Nullin Divecha, 57, who flew into Gatwick, said: ‘There was some information about washing our hands when we were leaving the plane – that was about it.

‘There was nobody waiting for us when we got off the plane.’

Italian Roberto Iotti, 56, who has lived in London for a decade, said: ‘There was an announcement on the plane to be careful about the virus.

‘There were only 20 people on the plane. I have called 111, and I’m going to self-isolate for the next couple of weeks.

‘I was surprised they didn’t check my temperature. It’s very dangerous now – it’s better to escape from Italy.’

The Foreign Office and PHE confirmed that nationals returning from Italy will not be met by anyone at the airport in Britain, nor will they be put into quarantine or told to take a test for the bug.

Meanwhile EasyJet will cancel some flights to and from the region up until April 3 – when the lockdown is scheduled to end.

British Airways are ‘reviewing their schedule’ and have offered customers travelling from the previously quarantined zone full refunds.

Customers who booked with BA – which has already scrapped hundreds of long-haul flights due to the killer disease – before April 2 have the option to change their booking up to another date up to the end of May, or to fly via Zurich or Geneva instead.

An Australian traveller, who did not want to be named was also flying back from Northern Italy and said she was not checked upon arrival in Stansted.

She said: ‘I was really surprised, I thought there were going to be checks. There were signs at passport control saying if you have symptoms to stay indoors.’

BA previously axed hundreds of short-haul flights to destinations across Europe – including Italy – after the coronavirus outbreak lead to plummeting demand for international travel.

Budget airlines Ryanair and EasyJet also previously announced a dramatic cut to flights to and from the region.

Italy’s flag carrier Alitalia has cancelled all flights from Milan and will limit its operations to a handful of domestic flights. Flights from Venice are still operational.

Two people wearing protective face masks in Malpensa airport. Passengers returning home from the worst-hit regions of Italy are not being checked upon landing

A map showing the latest number of infections and deaths in the world’s major coronavirus hotspots, including Italy

The death toll from coronavirus in Italy increased by 133 to 366 yesterday while the number of cases skyrocketed from 1,492 to 7,375. Pictured: People wearing protective masks queue in Malpensa airport

Return flights to Milan – one of the cities under lockdown – are still being offered by Ryanair, EasyJet and British Airways and are all available to book online (stock image)

An Italian military police officer checks the documents of a motorist travelling with his dog in San Fiorano, with authorities today imposing checkpoints to enforce a drastic new quarantine

A stop sign and a roadblock stand in the way of motorists on a road in San Fiarino, northern Italy, which is under lockdown

The Foreign Office advises 14 days of self isolation once back in Britain – but there is nothing stopping people from using public transport or entering crowded places on their way home.

Public Health England said all cabin crew are briefed on coronavirus symptoms and what to do if someone reports feeling ill onboard a flight.

It is possible to transmit the virus without any symptoms.

The captain is to call ahead to warn of any illness and a risk assessment will be carried out before passengers are let off the plane.

A ‘bespoke poster for Italy’ will be given to travellers from Italy to inform them of what areas are affected.

This is a drastically different response to the return of Britons from Wuhan – the epicentre of the outbreak – who were quarantined for 14 days in an isolation compound.

Police check a woman’s belongings by the side of a road in San Fiorano at a checkpoint where a lockdown is being enforced

Italy was under an extreme quarantine in which people face a three-month prison sentence for leaving locked-down areas, Britons in the coronavirus-ridden zone are free to travel home without facing penalties. Pictured: Travellers at Linate, Milan’s city airport

The Foreign Office confirmed that British tourists in the northern parts of the country ‘are free to return home or complete their holiday’ under guidelines from the Italian government. Pictured: Linate airport in Milan

A passenger wearing a protective face mask, amid concerns about coronavirus, walks in Linate Airport in Milan

The foreign office advises 14 days of self isolation once back in Britain. Pictured: Those in the orange regions were advised against all but essential travel by Britain’s Foreign Office before that advice was revised to include the whole if the country

Passengers depart from a train in Naples arriving from Milan as people scrambled to flee from quarantined regions of northern Italy on Sunday after the government imposed a lockdown

Mass panic swept in after the Italian government imposed a quarantine affecting 16 million people in the country’s northern region in a bid to combat the spread of deadly coronavirus. Pictured: People queue at bus stations trying to leave Lampugnano on Sunday