8 Planes Placed on Lockdown Due to COVID-19 Coronavirus at Heathrow Airport

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Eight planes were placed on lockdown at Heathrow airport Friday morning after passengers reportedly complained about having symptoms of the newly discovered COVID-19 coronavirus.

Passengers aboard United Airlines Flight 901 from San Francisco were told to stay put in their seats after their flight arrived in London Friday morning, because someone on board had complained about coronavirus symptoms, the Daily Mail reported.

One passenger aboard the flight told the news outlet that the captain told passengers that they may not move for awhile because "seven other planes" were also locked down due to suspected cases on board. Staff on the United Airlines flight led the passenger to the rear of the plan where they waited for health officials to arrive in hazmat suits.

All passengers were allowed off the flight about a half an hour later.

Heathrow Airport has not commented on the lockdown, but flight operations have been running as normal with all runways open.

"I think the passenger was taken right to the back of the plane, so I didn’t get to see what they looked like," passenger Andy West told The Mail. "We were told to stay [seated] until authorities came on board, and [the captain] said that seven other flights had landed and had a similar situation."

United Airlines confirmed that someone on board the flight had not been feeling well, but the airline did not go into what symptoms the passenger was experiencing.

"Our team at London Heathrow Airport is providing assistance related to United flight 901 (San Francisco-London Heathrow) today, following reports of an individual becoming unwell onboard," the airline said in a statement. "The safety of our customers and employees is our highest priority and we continue to work closely with local authorities.”

It's not clear where the person had been traveling from, or what happened to the passenger complaining about symptoms.

Photo: Getty Images


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