Netherlands: Waiting hours and Covid-19 test for hundreds of South African passengers at Amsterdam Airport

Hundreds of passengers, who arrived in Amsterdam on two flights from South Africa today, were faced with hours of delays while undergoing a covid-19 test due to concerns about the new coronavirus variant.

The Dutch government issued a ban on all passengers on flights from South Africa earlier today. Health Minister Hugo de Jong said in a statement that passengers who were already flying should be tested and quarantined upon arrival.

Passengers on two KLM flights, from Cape Town and Johannesburg, said they had been left waiting for hours on the runway.

“Warm applause, because there is a bus that came to take us… somewhere,” New York Times reporter Stephanie Nolen, who was on the flight from Johannesburg, tweeted.

“From the buses to a hall and a huge queue. I can see from afar people testing for Covid, in blue protective suits. They have not yet given us a snack to eat,” she added in a second Twitter message. .

Passengers “are currently being transported to a safe location in Schiphol,” the airport said in a statement.

“Everything is done with care and that’s why it took so long. The passengers have been offered food and drink. They will be tested for coronavirus.”

The Dutch health authorities later clarified that only passengers who test positive for Covid-19 will be forced into quarantine. Test results are expected later today.

Source: AMPE