This article is more than 6 months old

This article is more than 6 months old

The Trump administration needs to “get its shit together” in dealing with the coronavirus outbreak, the governor of Illinois said on Saturday, as travelers returning to the US at Chicago’s O’Hare international airport waited more than four hours for required medical screenings.

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The US has imposed travel restrictions on countries in Europe and China and Iran and travelers from such destinations are being advised to self-quarantine for 14 days after reaching their final destination in the US.

“If you don’t have to travel, I wouldn’t do it,” Donald Trump said at a White House briefing on Saturday.

At the same briefing, Trump and vice-president Mike Pence announced that travelers from UK and Ireland will be covered by a travel ban from midnight on Monday.

Play Video US expands travel ban to UK and Ireland amid Coronavirus outbreak – video

On Saturday night, Illinois governor JB Pritzker tweeted directly at Trump and Pence, noting that the customs process is under federal jurisdiction and demanding they take action to ease the crowding at O’Hare.

“The crowds and lines … are unacceptable and need to be addressed immediately,” Pritzker wrote.

“Since this is the only communication medium you pay attention to – you need to do something NOW. These crowds are waiting to get through customs which is under federal jurisdiction.

“To the frustrated people trying to get home, I have spoken with the mayor and our senators and we are working together to get the federal government to act to solve this. We will do everything within our power to get relief.

“The federal government needs to get its s@#t together. NOW.”

Pritzker’s concerns were echoed by his fellow Democrats, Illinois senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth.

“This is unacceptable, counterproductive and exactly the opposite of what we need to do to prevent #Covid-19,“ Duckworth tweeted. “The Trump administration must send more support to O’Hare immediately.”

Dense crowds at the selected airports – among the busiest across the country – formed even as public health officials called for “social distancing” to stem the spread of the virus.

“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,” one traveler, Dorothy Lowe, told WFAA-TV at Dallas/Fort Worth international airport, where some waits stretched to three hours.

Jason Whitely (@JasonWhitely) #BREAKING: Passengers stuck in long lines for immigration at @DFWAirport tell us there are no offers of hand sanitizer, gloves, or masks from U.S. Customs / Immigration. Travelers say they’ve had no screenings of temp yet and no one following #coronavirus protocols. pic.twitter.com/9viCnWdncz

While US citizens, green card holders and some others were allowed to return home, travelers from Europe were being funneled to one of 13 US airports where they were subject to health screenings and quarantine orders.

In tweets posted just after midnight, the Department of Homeland Security’s acting secretary said the screenings take about a minute per passenger.

“Right now we are working to add additional screening capacity and working with the airlines to expedite the process,” Chad Wolf tweeted. “I understand this is very stressful. In these unprecedented times, we ask for your patience.”

The Dallas airport’s Twitter account said its customer experience team was taking “extra precautions” and that hand sanitizer was available in all terminals. O’Hare and Chicago police offered bottled water and snacks, according to that airport’s Twitter account.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.

The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover.

Alexis McAdams ABC-7 (@AlexisMcAdamsTV) COVID-19 CHAOS: People traveling through O’Hare waiting in line for hours to go through customs.



Many worried about their health because they are standing next to hundreds of people and feel they can’t social distance themselves.



Crews handing out wipes & snacks. #COVIDー19 pic.twitter.com/rWEPVNBOOd

The worldwide outbreak has sickened more than 156,000 people and left more than 5,800 dead, with thousands of new cases confirmed each day. The death toll in the US has climbed to 57, while infections are close to 3,000.

The Trump administration has been widely criticised for delays in providing sufficient test kits – most observers think the actual number of infections is far higher but has simply not been detected.

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Hospitals across the US are working to expand bed capacity and staffing to keep from becoming overwhelmed.

“We have not reached our peak,” said Dr Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health at the same White House briefing. “We will see more cases, and we will see more suffering and death.”

Cities across the US have banned large public gatherings and companies including Apple and Nike have announced that their stores will be closed from Monday.

Millions of Americans are braced for no school for their children for many days to come, with no clue how to do their jobs without childcare and a growing sense of dread about how to stay safe and sane amid the spread of the coronavirus.

Tens of millions of students have been sent home from school amid closings that include all of Ohio, Maryland, Oregon, Washington state, Florida and Illinois along with big-city districts like Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington DC. Some schools will close for three weeks, others for up to six.

New York City has the largest public school system in the US. It remains open.