Passenger plane urgently returned to airport due to joke about coronavirus

On Monday, February 3, a WestJet airline flying from Toronto to Jamaica urgently returned to the airport. This happened because of a passenger who claimed to be infected with a coronavirus, writes USA Today.

Фото: Depositphotos

There were about 240 people on the plane.

Canadian police accused 28-year-old James Potok of hooliganism.

“I had a camera with me,” Potok told reporters. “I wanted to shoot a viral video and post it on all social media platforms.”

On the subject: Where to board an airplane so as not to become infected with a coronavirus or other infection

According to local police, James Potok, an Ontario resident, got up during the flight and said he was visiting China and contracted the virus. But an hour later, the medical staff at Pearson Airport found out that he had no symptoms of infection.

Representatives of WestJet called the Stream an undisciplined passenger and demanded that law enforcement and emergency medical services meet the return flight.

“We were very careful and followed all protocols for infectious diseases on board, including the fact of the appearance of a person who made an unreasonable statement regarding coronavirus,” a WestJet statement said.

The airline added flights to deliver passengers to Jamaica after the incident and return the plane to Toronto on Tuesday, February 4.

Potok was later arrested on charges of hooliganism and violation of his recognizance not to leave the place of residence. He is due to stand trial on March 9th.

“I assumed that this would cause a certain reaction, but not on the plane,” Potok told reporters. - Most of all I expected a reaction in social networks, something like “What a fearless guy” or “This type is crazy.”

Now James believes that his act "was bad form." As of February 7, World Health Organization officials confirmed 31 infections and 481 deaths caused by the 638-nCoV virus.

Read more at RBC:
https://www.rbc.ru/rbcfreenews/5e3ea6739a79473cd39b935d.

On the subject: Chinese coronavirus: is it worth wearing a mask on an airplane and how not to get infected while traveling

Government officials and public health officials are desperate to slow the spread of the respiratory virus through reliable screening, quarantine, and travel bans. Doctors and scientists specializing in infectious diseases study past outbreaks to determine how the new coronavirus will spread.

Experts suspect that there are far more cases than publicly reported.

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