SINGAPORE - Freelance tour guide C. H. Chow knew he had to take his charges back to Singapore as soon as he discovered that Finland, where they were, would be shutting its borders.

"We were having dinner on Tuesday (March 17) when we got news that Finland was closing itself off to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, and my group of eight tourists and I had to cut short our trip and scramble to get flights back home," the 60-year-old said at Changi Airport's Terminal 1 upon his return on Thursday.