The discovery of the Omicron COVID-19 variant disrupted flights and sparked worries of a hard shutdown in Africa’s most industrialised economy, causing shock and panic in South Africa.
Flights from South Africa to the United States, the United Kingdom, and other European countries were quickly halted after South African scientists reported the virus strain’s discovery on Thursday.
“This is absolute chaos. Nobody can tell us what is possible in terms of travel at this point,” said stranded passenger Steve Lawrence in OR Tambo, one of Africa’s busiest airports.
Since early November, the number of daily coronavirus infections has increased thirteenfold, with 3,220 new cases recorded on Saturday alone. 89,791 people have died in South Africa since the outbreak began.
Panic caused 600 passengers on two KLM aircraft from Johannesburg to Amsterdam to be stuck on the runway at Schiphol Airport.
“It’s naïve for developed countries to believe they can stop the spread of this variant with a blanket ban on countries in southern Africa.
The virus has already found its way into these societies from individuals that haven’t even travelled to or come into contact with anyone from southern Africa,” said Shabir Madhi, a South African vaccinologist, to Al Jazeera.
Flight cancellations increased immediately after the unexpected suspension of aircraft startled the tourism sector.
The South African tourism industry lost $10 billion in bookings in 2020 due to a decrease in international tourists, and an estimated $10 million each week due to airline cancellations.
The South African government labelled any travel restrictions on the nation “misdirected”, while the WHO urged for calm.
