Hazmat officials board Ryanair flight at Stansted and drag off Covid-infected passenger
Hazmat officials board Ryanair flight at Stansted and drag off Covid-infected passenger who broke quarantine by taking seat AFTER getting text alert that he had tested positive in airport
- Passenger received a message from health authorities as they were on the plane
- Police officers boarded the plane at London Stansted, according to passengers
- Footage shows three hazmat-clad officials on the plane to escort passenger off
- Were you on the plane? Please email luke.a.andrews@mailonline.co.uk
By Luke Andrews For Mailonline
Published: 04:49 EDT, 27 August 2020 | Updated: 07:41 EDT, 27 August 2020
Holidaymakers were left gripping their seats in horror when hazmat-clad officials boarded a Ryanair plane at Stansted to remove a passenger who took his seat after receiving a text saying he had tested positive for coronavirus before boarding.
The passenger and his travel companion were taken off the plane minutes before it was due to take-off from London and moved to the airport’s isolation area, where they were met by health authorities.
Their seats and the overhead cabin bins were then disinfected, before the plane was allowed to fly to Pisa one hour and 40 minutes behind schedule, according to Flight Radar.
‘They were both wearing masks at all times at Stansted Airport,’ Ryanair said in a statement, ‘and for a very short period (less than ten minutes) they were seated on the aircraft prior to departure’.
‘There was little if any risk of coronavirus transmission to other passengers or crew members as all of whom were also wearing face masks at all times.’
Shocking video shows three officials dressed head-to-toe in protective gear approaching the individual on the plane as a crew member tried to keep passengers in their seats.
Hazmat-clad officials boarded a plane in London Stansted after a passenger received a text from track-and-trace minutes before take off. The flight was bound for Pisa
Horrified passengers clutched their seats as the customer was escorted off the flight with their travel companion. The plane was still allowed to travel on to Pisa
The passenger, who has not been made, breached coronavirus quarantine restrictions by leaving their home and boarding the flight.
Instructions on NHS England’s website warn those with symptoms to stay at home.
‘If you are getting a test because you have symptoms, you and anyone you live with must stay at home until you get your result,’ they said. ‘Anyone in your support bubble must also stay at home.’
The Department of Health says online: ‘If you are getting a coronavirus test because you have symptoms, you and anyone you live with must self-isolate until you get your result.
‘This also applies to anyone in your support bubble (where someone who lives alone – or just with their children – can meet people from one other household).’
It can take up to 72 hours for tests to be completed to show whether someone has coronavirus.
A crew member was filmed trying to calm passengers down and keep them in their seats
The Ryanair flight was delayed for an hour and 40 minutes as the passenger’s seat and overhead cabin was disinfected in line with government guidance
A shocked passenger posted on Instagram a picture of herself and a friend wearing facemasks on the flight.
She said in the caption: ‘The face when you are about to take off and someone gets a text from track and trace.’
They added that police came onto the plane and claimed the individual was tested for coronavirus.
The Ryanair flight was still allowed to continue to Pisa. It is believed that no further action was taken by Italian authorities, and no other passengers were required to self-isolate.
Italy, that was at the epicentre of the pandemic, made facemasks mandatory in ‘all spaces open to the public’ between 6pm and 6am on August 16.
It recorded 479 new cases on that day, and yesterday recorded 1,367 new cases.
The Home Office has been contacted for comment.
