By Sarah Keane • Published: 04 Feb 2021 • 13:06
Image @jamesroland
‘MUTINY’ at Heathrow Airport as frustrated passengers forced to wait hours leap over barriers
A plane-full of passengers returning from Dubai on Saturday afternoon, January 30 who were forced to stand in a queue for hours after an automated passport machine broke down, took matters into their own hands and started leaping over the barriers in a scene one traveller described as a “mutiny” in Heathrow airport.
Adnan Raza, from Birmingham, was at the airport at the time and described the chaos that ensued when tired passengers had had enough.
“Behind me the machines stopped working and there was a bit of a mutiny, people started jumping over the barriers of the automated machines. There was a melee… security pacified the situation,” Mr Raza said.
Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, announced on January 29, via Twitter that the UK had added the United Arab Emirates to its red list, meaning that anyone travelling from the UAE to the UK would need to take an indirect flight.
The Home Office later confirmed that two passengers “attempted to evade being checked” by Border Force officers, but were “immediately stopped and checked.”
Mr Raza continued: “We get to Heathrow and the mood is very dour.
“There’s absolutely no social distancing, it’s ridiculous. They police how well you’re wearing your mask i.e. over your nose.
“I saw this with other passengers, but when you’re in the queues for passport control every body is on top of each other.”
From tomorrow (Friday 29 Jan at 1pm), we’re extending our travel ban with the United Arab Emirates, Burundi and Rwanda all added to the UK's red list. 1/3 — Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) January 28, 2021
From tomorrow (Friday 29 Jan at 1pm), we’re extending our travel ban with the United Arab Emirates, Burundi and Rwanda all added to the UK's red list. 1/3
— Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) January 28, 2021
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Former teacher and health services manager with a Degree in English, Sarah moved to Spain from Southern Ireland with her husband, who runs his own car rental business, in 2019. She is now enjoying a completely different pace and quality of life on the Costa Blanca South, with wonderful Spanish and expat friends in Cabo Roig. Sarah began working with Euro Weekly News in 2020 and loves nothing more than bringing all the latest national and international news to her local community.
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