More than 80 of EasyJet passengers were forced into quarantine for 14 days after being placed in a hotel in Spain when their flight from Gibraltar was delayed.
The passengers could have avoided the 14 days quarantine if the flight had gone as planned, as British overseas territory is on the UK’s ‘safe list’.
But due to bad weather, the Monday flight was postponed and they needed overnight accommodation.
But all hotel rooms in Gibraltar were full, so they had to accept the airline’s offer to find their own hotel room or to fend for themselves.
EasyJet carried 80 Britons with no other option across the border to Cadiz in Spain – a coronavirus hotspot.
That meant they would be forced to quarantine themselves for two weeks when they finally returned to the UK yesterday.
A passenger, Charlie Markham, 22, told The Sun: “EasyJet flew everyone to Spain overnight and now they’re going to mingle with people on the return flight who were safe in Gibraltar. “
At the end of last week, there were only 31 active coronavirus cases in Gibraltar, while Spain recorded 8,000 new infections on Friday alone.
He was removed from the UK’s secure travel corridor last month.
Basil Pru, from Surrey, was among those taken to Cadiz and told the news site: “We hear that some are going to remain silent because they don’t want to isolate themselves.”
The travelers were booked to fly back to the UK from the British territory with low-cost carrier easyJet. However, bad weather forced the airline to cancel the flight, leaving the 80 passengers stranded.
An easyJet spokesperson said: “Due to low visibility weather conditions in Gibraltar, easyJet had to delay flight EZY8906 to Gatwick overnight.
“We tried to provide as many hotel rooms as possible in Gibraltar, but due to the lack of rooms it was not possible to provide them to all customers, so we offered accommodation in Spain to those who wanted it.
Some customers have found accommodation in Gibraltar and easyJet will reimburse them for the costs.
“Although the delay is beyond our control, we would like to apologize to customers for any inconvenience caused by the weather.
Source:fr24news.com