A PREGNANT woman fainted as OAPs and families with babies were among those reportedly forced to queue for up to five hours at Heathrow Airport.
Furiose holidaymakers were faced with a fifth day full of chaos due to issues with eGates, staffing and other problems at Europe’s busiest airport. A man was pictured falling on the floor today.
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Brits claim they were crammed into hallways with no social distancing and made to walk long distances as shuttles weren’t available.
Five-hour waits were denied by the Home Office, who blames understaffing. According to one official, the longest delay in Terminal 5 yesterday was 1 hour and 15 minutes.
However, tourists who are returning from abroad claim the disruptions caused by immigration have resulted in nightmare delays.
Families with children under 12 years old can’t use their eGates, which is causing chaos for tourists returning from their first vacation abroad since lockdown.
Passengers claim they were “stranded” in poorly-ventilated hallways with no access to water or toilets.
Sonny Singh, a holidaymaker, claimed that he witnessed a pregnant woman pass out in the queue on Friday night.
“There were thousands of families queuing and just two people in booths up front checking documents,” He said that he saw a pregnant woman pass out while waiting in the queue on Friday night.
“Children were screaming and crying.”
Today, a new photo emerged showing a male traveller lying down on the airport floor.
The queues at the airport are causing disruption to the UK’s tourism industry. Tory MPs joined the protest against the ongoing chaos at the border.
Photographs show people with carry-on standing in long lines wearing masks while waiting for their turn.
Some took to social media to air their frustrations, with one passenger writing on Twitter: “Families with children, pregnant ladies and old folks – everyone had to wait. Is that human?”
‘PREGNANT WOMAN COLLAPSED’
Another photo taken inside the airport shows a huge queue of people with children waiting to show their passports – while eGates nearby stand empty.
One passenger told MailOnline: “The queues have been three to five hours long for immigration.
“I landed in Terminal 5 but the transit train wasn’t operating so we had to walk through a tunnel for around 20 minutes without ventilation.
“We’ve been in a queue for two to three hours already, but some have been told the wait is up to five hours – with families and babies stuck in the queue.”
Another said “really young children and old people” were walking long distances as shuttle trains are out of service.
“There are no toilets between the gates and passport control. No water, no social distancing,” They said.
TRAVELLERS’ FURY
“Absolute incompetence from UK Border Force and Heathrow Airport.
“Run an airport? They don’t have enough competence and intelligence to run a bath.”
Former Tory leader Iain Duncan-Smith told the publication the situation was “madness”, adding: “If it carries on like this Heathrow will cease to be a hub airport and Britain will be left in the backwash as an irrelevant country.”
A Home Office spokesman said their priority is “protecting the safety and health of the public” – meaning they “will never compromise on security”.
“Passengers will need to accept an increase in the time taken to cross the border,” He said.
“The rollout upgrades to our electronic gates to automate checks to meet health requirements is ongoing. There are many eGates in operation, and there will be more over the next few months. This will increase automated screening of passengers at airports.
Run an airport? They couldn’t run a bath
“However, for safeguarding reasons families with children under the age of 12 are not permitted to use the eGates.”
Heathrow has laid all the blame for the chaos on the Government.
A spokesperson blamed “unacceptable queueing times in immigration” on “too few Border Force officers on duty”.
She claimed the Home Office “were aware of the extra demand” and said airport chiefs are “disappointed”.
For families who want to stay for a few days, things will be worse.
High temperatures in the UK tomorrow and next week will cause severe traffic delays across the country.
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