‘One of the craziest things I’ve seen’: Chaos at U.S. airports as new coronavirus screening begins
U.S. travelers flying back from Europe were greeted with snaking lines and hours-long waits at major airports as expanded coronavirus screenings required by the government’s new European travel restrictions took effect this weekend.
The restrictions ban Europeans from flying to the United States for 30 days and require U.S. travelers to be screened upon arrival at 13 U.S. airports.
Travelers at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, New York JFK and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport took to social media to complain about the waits, with many worried that the logjam wasn’t helping stop the spread of the coronavirus.
College student Brandon Mach, who was flying back Saturday from Madrid, said he waited more than four hoursto clear U.S. Customs and Border Protection and go through Centers for Disease Control and Prevention screening at O’Hare. The Michigan resident said he landed at 4 p.m. and didn’t leave until nearly 9 p.m., until his temperature was checked and he was asked a few questions.
“What better way to ‘avoid large gatherings,’ ” he tweeted.
Mach, 20, told USA TODAY he had to go through customs twice, a second time after he told officials he was returning from Spain, where his semester abroad was cut short. The country went on lockdown Saturday as the result of a surge in coronavirus cases.
“That was by far one of the craziest things I’ve seen at an airport,” he said, noting that the medical screening was actually the quickest part.
Passengers he talked to in line were all going to miss their connecting flights out of O’Hare because of the logjam.
The situation was so bad at O’Hare that Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker called out the Trump administration on Twitter, and the airport tweeted that the problem stemmed from a lack of staffing. Chicago police distributed bottled water and snacks to travelers waiting to get through the lines.
“To the frustrated people trying to get home, I have spoken with the (Chicago) mayor and our senators and we are working together to get the federal government to act to solve this,” Pritzker wrote. “We will do everything within our power to get relief.”
Pritzker said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that the government should have added more customs and CDC staffers to handle what everyone expected would be a surge in passengers rushing home because of the restrictions.
“So last night, as people were flooding into O’Hare Airport, they were stuck in a small area, hundreds and hundreds of people. And that’s exactly what you don’t want in this pandemic.”
By Sunday afternoon, the situation seemed to be improving at O’Hare, with many travelers reporting waits of less than 30 minutes.
Houston resident Jennifer Barber said it took 25 minutes to clear customs from the time she landed in Chicago.
“No lines or anything,” she said. “It was really efficient.”
Barber, who flew in from the Czech Republic via London, said her temperature was taken several times and she was eventually asked to wear a mask because she has a “little cough.”
Vees Kujda didn’t have any complaints about long lines but he was angry about having to re-route his travel through Chicago because his initial destination, Tampa, didn’t have the required airport screening.
Kujda, who lives in Chicago, said he didn’t find out until he showed up at London’s Stansted Airport and was told he had to buy a new ticket and fly out of London Heathrow to Chicago.
The new ticket cost him $1,500 and he had to book a hotel near Heathrow. All for what he called a less-than-thorough screening.
“Totally unprepared,” he said of the new restrictions. “Wasted thousands of dollars for a 15-minute screening. If you want to really do a screening, then do the right screening.”
President Donald Trump weighed in on the long lines Sunday afternoon. He tweeted that the government is “moving as quickly as possible” but said it’s “very important that we be vigilant and careful.” He called the airport medical screenings “very precise.”
Mark Morgan, acting commissioner of customs, said in a statement Sunday on Twitter that the long lines were unacceptable but he stopped short of saying they would disappear.
“With this national emergency, there will be unfortunately be times of disruption and increased processing time for travelers,” Morgan said. “CBP is working around the clock to minimize these inconveniences.”
Chad Wolf, acting secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, acknowledged the long lines late Saturday and said the government was working to add additional screening capacity to speed things up.
Without extra staffing, the mess is likely to get worse because of a broadened ban Trump announced Saturday.
Beginning early Tuesday, passengers on flights from England and Ireland will join the lines for enhanced screening upon arrival.
Contributing: Nancy Armour, USA TODAY
