Icelandic Family Asks to Come Home from China

An Icelandic family has requested permission to return home from China, mbl.is reports. Icelandic authorities are working to get the family on board a flight, organized by the European Union, scheduled to leave China tomorrow, Friday. The flight is intended for bringing European citizens back home.

This was confirmed by Hjálmar Björgvinsson, superintendent at the Department of Civil Protection and Emergency Management.

This is a family of three: parents with one child. They have no symptoms of COVID-19, the novel coronavirus, nor does anyone else on the list of passengers for Friday’s flight. Once in Europe, the Icelandic family would then take a connecting flight to Iceland, where they would be subjected to a 14-day quarantine, as has been suggested for anyone arriving in Iceland from China.

Right now, it looks like the family will be granted seats on board the flight, although that has not been confirmed.

Hjálmar states that the family has been in China for quite some time, most likely traveling. Since the COVID-19 outbreak began, they have followed all instructions given by Chinese authorities and kept to themselves.