Government block books Heathrow hotel as coronavirus quarantine facility
The UK Government has block booked a Holiday Inn hotel at Heathrow airport as a quarantine facility in anticipation of more potential coronavirus cases arriving in the UK.
The Heathrow Ariel hotel on Bath Road will be used for those considered to be at risk but with nowhere else to go, the Department of Health said.
Rooms will be given to people who have been advised to self-isolate after returning from at-risk countries but do not have a place to do so.
It’s reported the hotel closed to the public on Saturday and staff were told it would not re-open for bookings until March at the earliest.
Guests booked to stay at hotel the have been transferred to sister hotels.
The move comes as the Government considers an evacuation flight to bring home the Britons stuck on the coronavirus-stricken Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan, where 454 people have now been diagnosed with the disease.
The Foreign Office is in contact with the 74 British nationals on the Diamond Princess ship in Yokohama about the possibility of repatriation flights.
A Number 10 spokesperson said: "We sympathise with all those caught up in this extremely difficult situation. The Foreign Office is in contact with all British people on the Diamond Princess, including to establish interest in a possible repatriation flight. We are urgently considering all options to guarantee the health and safety of those on board."
The ship’s two-week quarantine is due to end on Wednesday, although any passengers who shared a cabin with someone who has tested positive face an extra two weeks on board.
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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