Thousands of international travelers returning to North Texas reported long lines and cramped conditions in the Customs line at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on Saturday as staff took extra precautions to guard against coronavirus.
Airport officials urged patience as people had to fill out questionnaires from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as part of a travel ban the Trump administration instituted in an effort to halt the spread of the virus.
The screenings are necessary because the airport is one of the few accepting flights from areas affected by the travel ban, officials said.
“DFW Airport is one of 13 U.S. airports identified by the Department of Homeland Security to screen American citizens, legal permanent residents and their immediate families who are returning home from European and other regions,” airport spokesman Bill Begley said. “These federally mandated enhanced procedures are part of the effort to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.”
Another look at what's happening inside @DFWAirport and the lines at customs. Travelers say they've been in line 3-5 hours... Airport telling people delays are due to "enhanced screening for passengers" who have been abroad. @NBCDFW Video: Dorothy Lowe pic.twitter.com/beVj4TAsDM
— Katy Blakey (@KatyBlakeyNBC5) March 15, 2020
The problem, returnees say, is that the long lines make it impossible to maintain “social distancing,” a preferred measure to thwart the spread of coronavirus.
One traveler, a 33-year-old Dallas resident returning from Cancun with her family, waited in line for three hours until a Customs officials asked if anyone was returning from Mexico.
Those travelers were then immediately ushered through the line and sent home, she said.
“They booted me out. I never even saw a Customs agent,” said the woman, who asked to be identified only by her first name, Larrissa.
Adding to her concerns, she said she was coughing and sneezing and walked past at least three CDC officials who never took notice.
“I got sick a couple of days into the trip,” Larrissa said. “I’m not sure if it’s hay fever or what.”
Her doctor told her to follow CDC guidelines, which indicated that her symptoms were not generally associated with the new coronavirus.
Wait times at the airport were as long as four hours, according to WFAA-TV (Channel 8).
“I can see nothing but people for as far as I can see,” Longview resident Dorothy Lowe told the station.
Lowe, who was returning from Mexico, said she was still in line three hours after getting off the plane.
“I’m less concerned about having to stand here for the amount of time that I am, and more concerned about where the people are traveling from that are around me and what they may or may not have been exposed to," Lowe told WFAA.
People in customs line at @DFWAirport are saying they've waited for HOURS. There is no hand sanitizer and obviously no way to wash hands. What happens if a single one of these people goes on to test positive? (@wfaa) pic.twitter.com/3KsrBupQkS
— William Joy (@WilliamJoy) March 15, 2020
DFW wasn’t the only airport facing a crowd crunch Saturday. Travelers returning to Chicago O’Hare International Airport complained about long lines at multiple locations, including baggage claim.
The wait for baggage was as long as six hours, one passenger said on Twitter. Then a wait of at least two to four hours was next in Customs.
Police at O’Hare handed out water and disinfectant wipes, tweeted Brooke Geiger McDonald, a Chicago-area reporter.
Larrissa, the traveler returning from Cancun, said others in line were frustrated, worried about the health and of themselves and others.
“They were concerned about being with other people from all over the world coughing around them, and they’re stuck there with no way to get to their connecting flights," she said.
Begley said that he sympathized but that the screenings were unavoidable.
“The necessary additional procedures may cause delays in processing through Customs but are of the utmost importance for the health and safety of everyone,” he said.
Staff writer Kyle Arnold contributed to this report.