Authorities said Tonga has launched a rescue mission to evacuate its citizens from Wuhan, through the United Kingdom tomorrow Sunday 16.
The sports teams will be quarantined in London for two weeks and they would be looked after by Dr Faka’osi Pifeleti before they will return to Tonga via Dubai and Singapore.
According to Hon Poasi Tei, the Acting Minister of Health, the 51 sport teams members will leave China in three groups and are expected to arrive home in Tonga in the first week of March.
Meanwhile, officials have yet to comment on report a Chinese passenger was allegedly refused entry at Fua’amotu airport Thursday because he failed to show a health declaration card amid coronavirus outbreak.
The report by Kaniva news yesterday sparked great concerns among online users with many wanted immediate answers from government.
Many had been concerned about the conditions of other passengers who traveled to Tonga together with the traveler.
Questions had also been raised about the reliability of preventive safety measures imposed on travelers at Australia and New Zealand airports.
As we reported yesterday, the Chinese man allegedly failed to show a declaration document to Health authority, who monitors incoming passengers at the Fua’amotu airport, to prove he had been health-checked overseas before boarding a Virgin Australia aircraft, sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity told Kaniva News.
It is unclear at which destination did the passenger originally board the aircraft.
He was one of more than 100 passengers arriving from New Zealand and Australia on Virgin Australia VA61 AKL TBU which landed in Tongatapu yesterday February 13.
The Acting Minister of Health Poasi Tei responded to our request for comment saying he has cc’d (copied) his Ministry of Health Acting CEO “so he could respond and clarify it to us.”
