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WThe search for a few thousand British newcomers is in full swing in Switzerland due to the new strain of the coronavirus in Britain. On Monday, the authorities retroactively ordered the quarantine to prevent the new variant from spreading in Switzerland as much as possible. Anyone who has entered the UK since December 14 must be quarantined on the 10th day after arrival. This also affects thousands of ski tourists.
According to authorities, 92 planes from the UK arrived from December 14 until flights ceased on Sunday night. At the Geneva airport alone, there were around 3,500 passengers last weekend. The authorities take on about 10,000 passengers since December 14.
The cantonal health authorities are in charge of searching for the guests and also of monitoring the contacts with infected people. The Federal Office of Public Health has requested all airline passenger lists. Due to the corona pandemic, those who arrive have had to fill out a form and give their address in Switzerland for a long time.
The Verbier ski resort in the canton of Valais traditionally has a particularly large number of British guests. The venue made headlines in early December because visitors uploaded videos of the crowds on social media without any distance in front of the ski lifts. The director of the tourist office, Simon Wiget, assured at the time that strict security measures had already been implemented. At Verbier, most British guests won’t arrive until after Christmas, they now say. Those already there would be contacted.
Only a few Swiss cantons have closed their ski areas for the holidays. Those with the largest stations, the Valais with Zermatt, Saas Fee and Crans Montana, as well as Graubünden with Davos-Klosters and Engadin-St. Moritz is open.
In Turkey, about 4,600 travelers from Great Britain who entered after December 14 were quarantined. Health Minister Fahrettin Koca wrote on Twitter Tuesday that they would be isolated and examined in their homes or hotels. Turkey had already suspended air traffic with the United Kingdom, South Africa, Denmark and the Netherlands on Monday.
