Possible closure of all airports being looked into
airports
28 Mar 2020
/ 14:41
ATHENS. Minister of State Giorgos Gerapetritis left open the possibility of closing all airports to stop the spread of coronavirus in Greece.
The Minister said that the closure of airports is a measure being looked into for a 'later stage'.
He told SKAI that at this stage the Government is taking care of repatriating Greeks only for health reasons or because they don't have accommodation abroad and that there is a lot of pressure on the system from quarantining those who have already returned and tracing the contacts they have made.
"At a later stage this (airport closures) is something that is also possible. There is already a ban on flights from countries with a large number of cases but flights are still coming. There are already 6,500 people who have come from abroad in quarantine. This puts great pressure on the system as it means a lot of serious effort in policing, tracing contacts and isolating those that have been in contact with them," said Mr. Gerapetritis. "It is a burden that we can't completely shoulder, which is why we have said that we will only accept people returning if there is a health problem or they don't have accommodation. People who don't have a reason for coming to Greece now will not come."
The first cases in Ikaria and Cephalonia were 'imported'
A 25-year-old man was the first confirmed case of coronavirus in Ikaria - in Raches. According to information received, he returned from the UK last Friday and didn't adhere to the 2-week quarantine as travellers from abroad are obliged to do.
On Thursday he went to the hospital with symptoms and tested positive for the virus. Doctors told him to stay at home and follow medical guidelines as he only had mild symptoms.
The first confirmed case in Cephalonia also seems to have been 'imported' - the man having recently returned from Sweden. People he has been in contact with are being traced.
Source: cnn.gr
He told SKAI that at this stage the Government is taking care of repatriating Greeks only for health reasons or because they don't have accommodation abroad and that there is a lot of pressure on the system from quarantining those who have already returned and tracing the contacts they have made.
"At a later stage this (airport closures) is something that is also possible. There is already a ban on flights from countries with a large number of cases but flights are still coming. There are already 6,500 people who have come from abroad in quarantine. This puts great pressure on the system as it means a lot of serious effort in policing, tracing contacts and isolating those that have been in contact with them," said Mr. Gerapetritis. "It is a burden that we can't completely shoulder, which is why we have said that we will only accept people returning if there is a health problem or they don't have accommodation. People who don't have a reason for coming to Greece now will not come."
The first cases in Ikaria and Cephalonia were 'imported'
A 25-year-old man was the first confirmed case of coronavirus in Ikaria - in Raches. According to information received, he returned from the UK last Friday and didn't adhere to the 2-week quarantine as travellers from abroad are obliged to do.
On Thursday he went to the hospital with symptoms and tested positive for the virus. Doctors told him to stay at home and follow medical guidelines as he only had mild symptoms.
The first confirmed case in Cephalonia also seems to have been 'imported' - the man having recently returned from Sweden. People he has been in contact with are being traced.
Source: cnn.gr
