Coronavirus: Britons evacuated from Wuhan arrive in UK

A chartered flight carrying British nationals from Wuhan has landed at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire.

The 83 Britons on board will be transferred by coach to Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral, Merseyside, where a special facility has been set up for them to be quarantined for 14 days.

It comes as the first two cases of the new coronavirus were confirmed in the UK by Public Health England.

Deputy chief medical officer Dr Jenny Harries said everyone on the plane “is a well passenger”, but if they were to show symptoms of the virus, procedures are in place to “isolate” them and “remove them” at any time.

She said all passengers had had thermographic screening before the Wamos Air Boeing 747, and were subject to ongoing questioning and continuous risk assessment during the journey.

Emergency services – including the police, paramedics and other medical personnel – were on the runway waiting for the jet.

Families emerged, including children – a number of the passenger were wearing masks and carrying luggage.

It is understood the other 27 passengers on the plane, who are foreign nationals, will be flown on to their respective countries.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab tweeted: “A @foreignoffice plane has landed after evacuating UK & EU nationals from Wuhan. Thanks to FCO staff working round the clock in the & to get them home.

“Safety & security of UK nationals is our priority & we will keep working hard to provide help and support.”

The evacuation from the Chinese city – at the centre of the coronavirus outbreak in Hubei province – follows several delays.

Some Britons in Wuhan have said they were not given enough time to get to the flight in a city which is in virtual lockdown, as the Chinese authorities work to contain the virus which has spread to every province in mainland China – and to another 21 countries.

It is understood the Foreign Office sent consular cars and issued special travel permits to get people through road blocks.

Michael Pattison told Sky News he was given his travel documents just minutes before he had to be at the “muster point”.

He said: “I only received the official travel documents seven minutes before the deadline to get to the muster point which was 25 miles away in a city that’s in total lockdown with virtually no transport available.”

Among those who are still stuck in Wuhan is Nick House. He is from the UK and has two children with his wife, who is from Indonesia.

He told Sky News that he was only given three hours’ notice that the flight was leaving – with British officials initially warning that the Chinese government potentially wouldn’t allow his wife to leave.

When they were told his wife would be allowed to board the plane, they had already given up their seats.

“We’re resigned to being here for a while now. We are hopeful that the government can arrange other flights or put us on a flight to a different country,” he said.

“We’re just trying to make the best out of a pretty terrible situation to be honest.”

(c) Sky News 2020: Coronavirus: Britons evacuated from Wuhan arrive in UK