Cyprus Mail 10 September 2020 - by Bejay Browne
Airport operator Hermes said on Wednesday it was investigating after Cyprus residents say they gained entry to Cyprus without undergoing mandatory airport testing for coronavirus.
A young family arrived on an easyJet flight from the UK on Tuesday and were not tested for Covid-19 by officials at Paphos airport, a mandatory process for Cypriot citizens and residents, according to a social media post.
The couple initially posted their comments on a popular Facebook group and screen shots of it were sent to the Cyprus Mail, Paphos airport and ministry of health officials by a concerned resident.
The post has since been deleted by the family, the page moderator informed the Cyprus Mail, after it created a huge backlash.
“They are a young couple that live in Paphos and have been self isolating in the UK since March as they have a premature baby. They certainly didn’t skip testing purposefully, it was innocent and they were so relieved to get here. Everyone was very critical of them and also of me as I posted a ‘welcome back’ message to them, but it’s not up to me to police the airport. The couple who I don’t know, have even apologised to me for all of the abuse I received,” the moderator said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The family is now in self isolation, she confirmed, but only after apparently eating out in Paphos after their arrival.
The couple’s post read: “Finally back home in Paphos. Bizarrely though we were sitting on the plane with all of the others that had opted for a test on arrival. (Available to Cyprus residents.) EasyJet staff told us that we would have to have the test at 60 euros each. We waited in line, an astute airport employee noticed that our baby was getting very hot after 20 minutes in the sun, so waved us through. No checks whatsoever, despite ‘Test on arrival’ in big red letters. We thought we would be tested at the next stage, but we were just allowed to collect our bags and leave.”
The post continued: “I don’t know if they just didn’t bother due to the volume of people, or we just slipped through the cracks? Either way, sat in Paphos with a chicken kebab and a cold beer. Yiammas.”
A staff member of Paphos airport told the Cyprus Mail that all arrivals for testing are directed to an outside area of the airport to register, pay and wait for a test to be carried out before they are able to leave.
“No-one has the authority to give any exception to anyone and if it did happen, it’s quite strange as you can’t skip the strict process that’s in place. Even if they were waved out of the sun to be shown some shade, the officials inside the building would see that they didn’t have a test and divert them back outside,” he said.
Firstly, passengers must show their negative corona virus test papers to officials of the health ministry and then secondly to immigration.
The Cyprus Mail informed Hermes airports, the operator of the islands two airports, on Wednesday morning of the apparent breach in protocol which resulted in the family not being tested.
“This is impossible, as all arrivals are dealt with meticulously, however we will investigate. Something is not clear here and we will find out what happened. They should have insisted on having the test,” a spokeswoman said.
The Facebook page moderator has posted an update to try and calm people’s concerns, she said.
“The young family who have been isolating since March because they had a premature baby and got stuck in the UK who arrived last night after the young man got out of hospital recently are now back in isolation. Thank you everyone for your concern.”