U.S. travelers flying back from Europe late Saturday were greeted with snaking lines and hours-long waits at major airports as expanded coronavirus screenings required by the government's new European travel restrictions took effect.
The restrictions ban Europeans from flying to the United States for 30 days and require U.S. travelers to be screened upon arrival at 13 U.S. airports.
Travelers at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, New York JFK and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport took to social media to complain about the waits, with many worried that the logjam wasn't helping to stop the spread of coronavirus.
College student Brandon Mach, who was flying back from Madrid, said he waited more than four hours to clear customs and go through Centers for Disease Control and Prevention screening at O'Hare. The Michigan resident said he landed at 4 p.m. and didn't leave until nearly 9 p.m., until his temperature was checked and he was asked a few questions.
"What better way to 'avoid large gatherings,' " he tweeted.
Mach, 20, told USA TODAY he had to go through customs twice, a second time after he told officials he was returning from Spain, where his semester abroad was cut short. The country went on lockdown Saturday as the result of a surge in coronavirus cases.
"That was by far one of the craziest things I've seen at an airport,'' he said.
The medical screening was actually the quickest part, Mach said.
Passengers he talked to in line were all going to miss their connecting flights out of O'Hare because of the logjam.
The situation was so bad at O'Hare that Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker called out the Trump administration on Twitter.
"To the frustrated people trying to get home, I have spoken with the (Chicago) mayor and our senators and we are working together to get the federal government to act to solve this,'' Pritzer wrote. "We will do everything within our power to get relief."
O'Hare said via Twitter that the problem stemmed from a lack of staffing.
Airport officials said Chicago police distributed bottled water and snacks to travelers waiting to get through customs.
Chad Wolf, acting secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, acknowledged the long lines and said the government is working to add additional screening capacity to speed things up.
Mark Morgan, acting commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which oversees airport customs, said the agency is already seeing improvements at some airports but didn't specify which ones.
Without extra staffing, the mess is likely to get worse because of a broadened ban President Trump announced Saturday.
Beginning early Tuesday, passengers on flights from England and Ireland will join the lines for enhanced screening upon arrival.
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March 15, 2020 at 08:37PM
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'One of the craziest things I've seen': Chaos at U.S. airports as new coronavirus screening begins - USA TODAY
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