BERLIN: Some 120,000 Germans stranded abroad as borders slam shut because of the coronavirus pandemic have been flown home in a massive rescue effort over the past few days, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Monday.
“In the past few days, we have already been able to bring 120,000 German travelers back to Germany — partly through travel agencies themselves and partly through planes chartered by the government,” Maas said.
The foreign ministry had earlier estimated that around 200,000 Germans were stranded abroad and seeking repatriation.
The government last week agreed to spend €50 million ($56 million) in a deal with commercial airlines to fly citizens home from affected regions.
Maas said most people from the “main holiday regions” had been returned and efforts would now be focused on those stuck further afield in countries such as Chile, Mexico, New Zealand and The Gambia.
Repatriations from these countries would be more challenging, he said, because of difficulties accessing airports.
EU foreign ministers have agreed to share flight capacity and data to help return as many people as possible to the bloc — a promise reiterated by Maas.
“We will open our flights, where we still have capacity, to citizens of other member states of the union,” he said.
As of Monday, Germany recorded 22,672 official cases of the new coronavirus and 86 deaths.
Europe’s biggest economy closed its land borders last week and the European Union has also sealed its external borders to incoming travelers to try to slow the spread of the new coronavirus.
Germany has also imposed a ban on gatherings of more than two people, and shut schools, non-essential shops, bars and restaurants.
120,000 Germans stranded abroad over virus flown home
https://arab.news/g6wun
120,000 Germans stranded abroad over virus flown home
- Foreign Minister Heiko Maas: In the past few days, we have already been able to bring 120,000 German travelers back to Germany
- EU foreign ministers have agreed to share flight capacity and data to help return as many people as possible to the bloc
Chile wildfires leave 19 dead amid extreme heat as scores evacuated
- Fast-moving wildfires being worsened by intense heat, winds
- Firefighters battling 23 active blazes spreading toward cities
CONCEPCION, Chile: Wildfires in Chile have left at least 19 people dead, authorities said on Monday, as the government carried out mass evacuations and fought nearly two dozen blazes exacerbated by intense heat and high winds.
While weather conditions overnight helped control some fires, the largest were still active, with adverse conditions expected throughout the day, security minister, Luis Cordero, said at a news briefing on Monday.
“The projection we have today is of high temperatures,” Cordero said, and the main worry was that new fires would be triggered throughout the region.
Parts of central and southern Chile were under extreme heat warnings with temperatures expected to reach up to 37 Celsius (99 Fahrenheit).
STATE OF EMERGENCY DECLARED IN NUBLE, BIO BIO
As of late Sunday, Chile’s CONAF forestry agency said firefighters were combating 23 fires across the country, the largest of which were in regions of Ñuble and Bío Bío, where President Gabriel Boric declared a state of catastrophe.
Over 20,000 hectares (77 square miles) have been razed so far, an area about the size of Seattle, with the largest fire surpassing 14,000 hectares on the outskirts of the coastal city Concepcion.
The fast-moving blaze tore through the towns of Penco and Lirquen over the weekend, destroying hundreds of homes and killing several people, with authorities still assessing the damage.
HEAT, BLAZES ALSO IMPACT ARGENTINA
Authorities are currently battling the fire as it threatened Manzano prison on the edge of Concepcion and the town of Tome to the north.
Both Chile and Argentina rang in the new year with heat waves which have continued into January. Earlier this month, wildfires broke out in Argentina’s Patagonia, burning around 15,000 hectares.
