BORDER BOUND
Saltwire’s Fram Dinshaw made it back to Canada just as the borders shut behind him
Truro News reporter faced the fear while travelling home from the U.K.
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM – You could almost smell the fear amid a sea of facemasks, the minute you stepped inside Heathrow Airport.
The departure hall was a heaving mass of humanity, literally thousands of travellers trying to return home, as Canada and other countries closed their borders in a desperate bid to halt the spread of COVID-19.
I too was sweating, but not from the heat. It was the stark realization that crowds of people in a confined space was a perfect way to spread COVID-19. Many travellers were flying back to China, from where the virus originated.
All I wanted to do was return to Truro, after a week spent in England with my parents and old school friends. My vacation started normally enough, but as COVID-19 continued its deadly march across Europe, I soon realized even simple pleasures like drinking in the pub would be a thing of the past.
That’s how I found myself in an airport terminal with thousands of potentially infected people standing literally inches from me at the check-in desk.
My Air Canada flight home Monday was delayed by 11 hours, the same day the federal government announced air travel restrictions and border closures.
As a Canadian citizen, I could come back to the country I chose to call home. However, I was very nearly stuck in the land of my birth. My plane to Ottawa was the last to fly before the government restricted incoming international flights to only Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver airports.
Needless to say, I missed my connection to Halifax; being 11 hours late has that effect on a schedule.
The flight itself took off at 10 a.m. local time and it was jammed full. I was tired, red-eyed and ready to pass out. I looked up at the cabin ceiling and noticed a greenish mood lighting designed to mimic the Aurora Borealis. Pandemic or not, flying Air Canada has its perks.
As the aircraft lifted off, a baby starting crying. The youngster threw a fit all the way across, screaming out loud what all of us felt inside. It’s the feeling of holidays, time with loved ones, business trips and a multitude of other plans, cut short by an invisible enemy.
I looked over at my seat-mate’s TV screen – mine was broken – and noticed she was watching a film depicting Wehrmacht troops in battle.
Their machine guns and Swastika banners were a dark reminder that today, we face another global struggle against another lethal enemy.
It was my last thought before drifting into a fitful, restless sleep, periodically awakened by the baby’s screams.
Landing in Ottawa, we were greeted by border guards wearing masks. They asked if we had a fever or cough, typical COVID-19 symptoms. But it all seemed so cursory. Surely, if we are at war with this virus, there would be public health officials testing passengers and taking temperatures?
Then again, I was too tired to care. It was nearly 2 a.m. After a few hours’ sleep in some nondescript airport hotel I was airborne again for Halifax.
Arriving in Truro by cab, things seemed strangely normal, albeit more quiet. A few shuttered restaurants and bars, but no mass hysteria here.
The fear that gripped Europe seemed a world away, though the invisible enemy had already found its way here.
And, now, like so many others, I write this article and work from my quarantined quarters at home.
My week in Britain made me appreciate more than ever the part we all have to play in fighting this killer pandemic.
Quarantine, hand-washing and looking out for our vulnerable neighbours are our best weapons until a vaccine is found.
It will at least buy us some time.