Shanghai has tightened up its coronavirus screening procedures for those arriving at the city’s airports, making for some extremely long wait times, even for those not headed toward quarantine.
Last week, the Shanghai government decided that those travelers who lived or traveled in countries badly hit by the Covid-19 virus, like South Korea, Italy, Iran, and Japan, in the past 14 days will be put under quarantine upon arrival for 14 days, either at their homes or in designated hotels.
Now, passengers arriving in planes from these countries must stay seated upon landing while customs officials board the aircraft and check the temperature and information of each passenger.
Those who are suspected of having coronavirus symptoms will be escorted to an ambulance out on the tarmac which will take them straight to the hospital.
Another health check will be waiting for passengers as they exit the plane on the boarding bridge.
At the regular customs check, passengers will have to hand in an updated health declaration card that asks things like: occupation, entry and exit port, contacts in China, address in the coming two weeks, countries and regions traveled to in the past two weeks, whether you have taken cold medicine in the past three days, and if two or more people in your family or workplace have a fever or other symptoms.
The card can either be completed on paper or in a mobile app.
Officials will then give your passport a green, yellow, or red label.
While a green label means that you can leave the airport freely, a red or yellow label means that you must undergo further tests at the airport.
Those destined for quarantine will now be escorted, either by bus or private transport, to their home or quarantine center in Shanghai, where local officials, doctors, police, and foreign language volunteers will be waiting to give you all the details and have you sign a quarantine commitment letter.
These new procedures come as China has shifted its focus from coronavirus cases inside the country to those arriving from abroad.
Last week, at least eight Chinese nationals landed at the Pudong airport from Italy and passed through coronavirus screening before arriving back at their home county in Zhejiang province and testing positive for the virus.
As you might expect, all these new procedures have significantly lengthened waiting times with some travelers reporting spending as much as seven hours at the airport. While queuing in line, travelers are being told to avoid contact with one another and keep a distance of at least 1 meter from other people.
Meanwhile, travelers have reported that you can now depart from the Pudong airport at record speed.
https://shanghai.ist/2020/03/09/what-you-can-now-expect-when-arriving-at-shanghais-airports/