MUA Kay Yarms vlogs South African Coronavirus airport screening process

This Youtuber shows us how South African international airports are screening arrivals from high-risk countries.

 

On the 20th of March, Kay Ngonyama, known as Kay Yarms uploaded a YouTube video vlogging her experience flying back into South Africa from America.

In the video, there appears to be confusion about what people need to do or where they need to go on arrival.

Eventually the make up artist follows a group of people to a clinic in the airport. The clinic is surrounded by people wearing masks and not quite sure what the correct and full process is. A queue leading out of the clinic door sees many people holding forms. She grabs a form, fills it in and joins the queue. When she reaches the front, she asks the woman at the counter if she will be getting tested, or if anyone will be getting tested. The woman says no.

Towards the end of the video, she explains a rather uncomfortable conversation she heard between the woman at the clinic counter and a man who claimed to have Covid-19/Coronavirus symptoms.

Ngonyama states that the man in question told the woman that he thinks he might have the Coronavirus because he is experiencing most of the symptoms. Apparently, the woman gets on the phone and speaks to a doctor about the issue. Apparently the doctor says he must go home and self-isolate and that if the symptoms persist, he may then seek further medical assistance. Thereafter they test his temperature and find that he still has a fever, but still let him go with the same advice they gave him earlier.

The woman tells Kay and a number of people;

“after you fill in the form you’re done”

– and continues to let them leave.

Showing concern, Kay asks if that it all?

“If you ticked yes on the form, then we follow-up,” the unidentified woman responds.

This comes after ACSA (Airports Company South Africa) promised to strengthen screening and testing measures at international airports.

On Monday, 16 March 2020, ACSA said passengers identified as potentially infected at the airport would be channelled to the National Institute of Communicable Diseases for further testing.

But by the looks of this video; intense screening? We thinks not.

Kay Yarms’ video description reads:

“Seeing as everyone is assuming that travellers are going through intense screening at the airport but they actually aren’t going through any screening at all.

I landed on the 19th at 17:10, I flew SAA. This was a day after the travel ban was implemented, I didn’t go through any screening. & no one else did but anyway, I will be staying at home to try keep myself and everyone else protected.

So should everyone else really but more especially if you have been travelling! Stay safe!”

The main problem with Kay’s unfortunate encounter is that it proves;

• People coming from high-risk countries have been allowed back into the country and communities without getting adequately tested
• Even though Kay was returning from a high-risk country, the screening process does not show a level of urgency that agrees with the recent travel ban;

As of the 18th of March “South African citizens are advised to refrain from all forms of travel to or through the European Union, the United States, United Kingdom and other identified high-risk countries such as China, Iran and South Korea,” the president said.

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