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THOUSANDS OF IRISH citizens are stranded in Australia and New Zealand after the country imposed a lockdown yesterday that closed most public spaces.
A number of Irish citizens have been left stuck in the country they were visiting after airlines grounded flights and countries announced unprecedented border closures.
In Peru, a strict lockdown closing all land, air and sea borders was announced with very little notice, leaving around 100 Irish citizens stranded; the Irish government is now chartering a plane over to Lima, Peru to collect them and bring them home.
The Irish Embassy in Chile, which is the embassy for Irish citizens in Peru, said today that the date of the flight “will be dependent on the relevant permissions from the Peruvian authorities”.
Embassy of Ireland / TwitterOnce we know the approved day for the flight, we will be in contact in relation to travel plans for Irish citizens outside Lima, including in Cusco and other cities. 2/2 #irishinperu
— Embajada de Irlanda en Chile, Perú y Ecuador (@IrlEmbChile) March 24, 2020
John McMenamin from Carrickmacross in Co Monaghan has been in Australia for 15 months. Yesterday, Australia announced a shutdown of non-essential services, which means closing cafés, gyms, and bars, and libraries – places where many young Irish people who are living in Australia work.
We’re basically trapped here, there’s nothing leaving Sydney. We literally cannot go anywhere. We’re in limbo – we could be stuck here for months.
The Irish consulate in Sydney said yesterday that it was responding to a “large volume of inquiries” to the consulate.
“Nobody understands the severity of this. The airports are full of Irish people: they get to the desk and are told the flight is cancelled, after paying $5,000 for a flight. Flights have been going at $16,000.”
He tried to book a flight home at the weekend, and said that Qatar Airways quoted him AUD$9,536 to fly home on Sunday. This compares with a one-way ticket price of between AUD$700-$800; John got return flights home at Christmas for AUD$1,700.
We have absolutely no chance of getting home, but they’re still advertising flights and taking money off us for flights.
He says friends of his have paid AUD$2,500 on flights home, only to be told the flight won’t be going ahead, and that they can’t get their money back but instead would be given a credit voucher.
“That’s how stranded we are. Some people are out here a month, maybe five or six weeks, you have to get an apartment setup, maybe not a job yet, they’ve been eating into their savings and now there’s no chance of getting the job, and no money. Nowhere to stay.
“It’s very very scary times here. Very very scary.”
Irish Foreign Ministry / Twitter⚠️Important Travel Update - Australia
— Irish Foreign Ministry (@dfatirl) March 23, 2020
Citizens are advised to follow updates from @dfatirl, @irlembaustralia, @IrelandSydney or @dfatravelwise.
In addition, we encourage all Irish citizens to register contact details on Citizens’ Registration at https://t.co/907ZCZfH8w pic.twitter.com/CfwXJ99zpX
He says he’s lucky, as he’s one of the few people who now have a job and has friend who can support him, but adds that there are “hundreds of Irish people here who have no job, no money, and nowhere to stay”.
The Australian government don’t want to know anything about us, because they’re gonna look after their own, which is fair enough. You know they don’t really care what backpackers.
“We expect that your own country, your own government would look after you. And here we are, we have no correspondence.”
John says that a friend of his in Sydney hasn’t stopped crying for two days because she can’t get home.
“There’s a lot of young Irish people here as well, 21 or 22, who cannot get home, and it’s very very worrying because we don’t know when we can get home.”
An Irish couple in New Zealand were about to fly home when one of them was notified that they came in contact with a confirmed case. So instead of flying home, they self isolated, and missed their flights. The test came back negative yesterday.
“However, by taking the proper precautions and self-isolating while we waited for the result, now we are stuck. No flights are available despite extensive and exhaustive searches.”
New Zealand is now to go into full lockdown, with travel severely limited, and little job prospects for those left behind.
There have been 1,ooo signatures to a petition asking the Irish government to repatriate Irish people in New Zealand who have no other means to get home.
If you’re stranded in Australia, or another country, and are trying to get back home to Ireland, you can share your story at: grainne@thejournal.ie
Hire more staff.
@Mickey Finn: And pay them a decent wage.
@Mickey Finn: And pay them better.
@Mickey Finn: taking some of them from Cork airport, it seems. They won’t know themselves when the Cork lads get going, and show them how to run things properly up there!
@Mickey Finn: plenty of applicants. The delay is the Garda vetting.
@Joe Kennedy: their regional airport experience will make a huge difference hopefully
@Mickey Finn: did you actually read the article or just throw out a nonsensical comment, 100 staff hired another 250 invited for interview, I believe that this actually means they are hiring
@Joe Kennedy: The Cork lads will get to see widebidy aircraft rather than the norm 737/A320.
@Dave Byrne: won’t matter what type of planes they are Dave, they’ll be able to manage them no bother!
@Dave Byrne: At least the passengers will get to see the inside of their plane, not watch it take off ,while still in the security queue. Lads from the real capital to the rescue again !!
Genuine question – if we get to airport 3 and half hours or more before, will the bag drop be available for checking in bags on a ryanair flight? Sometimes they don’t open until a certain time before the flight. I don’t want to be stuck waiting for it to open and only then joining security queue.
@Susan Carolan: I can confirm arrived at Dublin Airport last Friday at 2pm (Ryanair flight at 6.25pm ) at the baggage drop area the machines allowed baggage weight and labels and checked in 4 hrs before flight and was through security (fast track) 51 mins after I arrived at airport..can’t blame the staff their as they doing best in a poor management of the basics. Hope this is helpful and that ya get to where your going stress free
@Susan Carolan: got an email the day before my flight last friday to say check in desks open 4 hrs before and close 40mins before flight from Dublin due to the staffing issues with DAA
@Greg Lee: Thank you so much, thats similar flight time to us and all so its very reassuring to know. Thankfully some logic being used and I can only imagine the staff must feel they are working in a pressure cooker. Fairplay to them.
Cheers for the updates Greg and Paul too
@Susan Carolan: no problem Susan glad could give you my experience also just remembered that for some reason the normal bag drop which is on the right hand side of the weight scales were closed but the whole section on left hand side was open…just a side note…but ryanair staff there were very helpful as had 3 x20kg bags to check in and was stressed reading all the comments 5 days beforehand.. if at bag drop 4hrs before you should be good..just make sure bring a book or have a podcast to kill the time
Wouldn’t it have been great if they put a plan together BEFORE the mess and people missing their flights. Someone should let them know if you add all the tickets numbers sold together from the different airlines you should come up with a fairly good idea day to day how many to expect. Ahh well promotions all round I suppose.
@Thomas Meaney: but…that’s the airlines data, no the airport……
By adding a tolling system for drop offs? Not a great plan there DAA..
Terminal 2 was opened years ago to increase capacity from 15 million to 26 million. DAA want to open another runaway to increase capacity. There are currently less than 20 million going through the airport and we have long queues. DAA now want to charge for the privilege of going to our airport! I’m sure that will quicken things up!
Get the pen pushers out helping in the security lines
No comments allowed on the Claire Byrne article?
Here is a fine example of zero hour contracts. 20 hrs work, and standby for remaining hours. Watch and learn from what unfolds. This could prove an expensive trial, with savings proposed being wiped out and the pr damage unmeasuable.
@Tony: During the 9/11 commission security was one of the things that was looked at,These jobs were mainly run by private security companies not paying much.
All security screening is know carried out by Federal employees.
@Dave Byrne: wrong country mate! It’s somewhat different here in Ireland.
Obviously the DAA didn’t think that their would be a rebound when the pandemic was going to end and that there be a demand for air travel,And 1100 staff were let go in the meantime.
Then they want to employ people on 20hr contracts.
There is no logic to having people arrive earlier to queue for security. It just creates the queue. It took an hour to get to security at 04:00 am Monday.
Hiring more people is the actual solution.
Big billboards should be used for advertising things other than vacancies at DAA, and the income used to improve pay.
Oh the potential solution is staring you in the face as you walk through the airport.
Can you not lock toilets and turn off the water in the men’s toilets at night.?? T 2 no water to wash your hands at the upstairs food hall outbound in the early hours of the morning and same at baggage claim on return..
@Daniel Morrissey: I’m sure Eamonn is applauding this, think of saving the planet!!!!! Who needs necessities when it’s wasteful!
We went through in less than 15 minutes in Friday morning round 11am!!!
Ryanair are still selling Fast Track as an upgrade to existing bookings.
There is no logic to having people arrive earlier to queue for security. It just creates the queue. It took an hour to get to security at 04:00 am Monday.
Hiring more people is the actual solution.
Big billboards should be used for advertising things other than vacancies at DAA, and the income used to improve pay.
The potential solution is staring you in the face as you walk through the airport.
A proper full time contract and proper pay should sort this issue out overnight. The bean counters on mega bucks trying to introduce inferior contracts on minimum wages no wonder the staff originally left go are not returning. If the airport authority was held accountable for full cost of any missed flights due to security delays this would have never occurred. But again no accountable require by Government.
3.5 hours? You might as well take the fast ferry and train to London!
Flew from Dublin to Newark, USA last Friday. Arrived 3.5 hours before flight. Took about 1.5 hours to clear security, TSA and Immigration. No big deal, unless you are a chronic whiner.
Maybe if staff were better trained in stopping and checking bags things might improve.
Every time I go through security there my bag is hauled aside because of something the baggage scanner dimwit thought was odd.
Nothing ever is.
One time a pair sunglasses in a case.
Another a selfie stick, another time cables and a charger etc.
Waste of time and resources if they can’t do their jobs properly and recognise ordinary stuff like this – and bloody annoying too (for everybody).
I make sure they pack up my bag for me again rather than leave me do it.
It used to be a breeze there compared to now.
@UK Hurling Bloke: clown
@UK Hurling Bloke: maybe you don’t realise it but it’s the scanner which pics up anomalies automatically and sends it for secondary. I imagine that as the real dimwit here is you m, you weren’t aware.
Bus them to Shannon to save Qing times
Management not fit for purpose. If it was a private business they’d be fired. 3.5 hours to go on a 40 min flight is nothing short of scarlet
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