New entry procedures at city’s two airports
After being escorted from the Hongqiao airport to his home in Shanghai, Masuda from Japan said such measures are necessary and effective for the prevention of the coronavirus.
With the recent rise of coronavirus cases outside China, all people who lived or traveled in South Korea, Italy, Iran and Japan — the four countries hardest-hit by the coronavirus outside China — in the 14 days prior to their arrivals in Shanghai must undergo 14-day quarantine at home or in designated places for medical observation.
They are undergoing new entry procedures at the city’s two airports with stricter quarantine inspections and will be picked up and taken to their homes for the 14-day quarantine as the latest prevention measure.
Officials from the city’s 16 districts, as well as neighboring Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces, are based at the Hongqiao and Pudong airports around the clock.
Masuda, who works and lives in Shanghai, arrived at the Hongqiao airport with Japan Airlines Flight JL081 from Tokyo around noon on Saturday.
He had to go through multiple temperature checks, as well as making a health declaration and epidemiological investigation with customs officers before he entered the arrival hall of Hongqiao airport at 2pm, with a yellow label on his passport.
Passport labels
Customs officials now label passengers’ passports in green, yellow and red colors after the quarantine inspection.
A green label means the passenger has traveled from countries and regions with minor epidemic conditions. They can leave the airport freely.
A red or yellow label means they came from key coronavirus-affected regions and must undergo further screening and checks.
Masuda was guided to a quarantine zone, registered his address and other personal information. He was then accompanied to the parking garage, where he was picked up by a car sent by his company. When he arrived at his neighborhood, a community worker, a doctor and a police officer were waiting at the entrance.
They gave Masuda a quarantine notice in Japanese and invited him to a WeChat group, where all those coming from key affected regions like him share information and ask for help from the community workers during the quarantine period.
Doctors at a community health center will check his temperature and health condition every day for the next 14 days.
“The epidemic would have been out of control without such strict prevention measures conducted by the Chinese government,” Masuda said. “It is fully acceptable as well as necessary and effective.”
Desks have been set up by the city’s 16 districts and neighboring Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces at the Pudong airport to register and transport those from key affected regions.
Preparations have also been made for transit passengers, who will board trains or another flight in China or to another country.
Three hotels have been newly designated in downtown Changning District to serve and accommodate transit passengers from the Hongqiao airport.
Around the clock
At one of the hotels in the Jiangsu Road Subdistrict, over 90 transit passengers were received over the weekend. Community doctors and medical workers are working around the clock to register the information, flight number and travel plans for each passenger.
After landing at the Hongqiao airport on a flight from Seoul, traveler Fan was picked up and taken to a hotel to spend a night and take a following flight to Kunming in southwest Yunnan Province.
After finishing breakfast on Sunday, a vehicle waited at the entrance of the hotel to take him to the airport.
“All the officials are working overnight and I will definitely follow every order and instruction from them,” Fan said.
Shen Ye, director of the community health center of the Jiangsu Road Subdistrict, said doctors and community workers will accompany each transit passenger until airline or railway staff take them over and send them onto their plane or train.
Similar designated hotels have also been prepared at each district for travelers from key affected regions and without accommodation in the city to receive the 14-day observation. Buses will take them to designated hotels. After finishing temperature checks and information registration, they can enter their rooms for the quarantine.
Daily necessities have been prepared in each room, while staff will deliver meals to them three times per day, said Qian Yufeng, director of the quarantine work team in Hongqiao Town.
Qian said interpreters are standing by to offer help and solve problems for quarantined travelers from abroad.