Right off the bat, let me say that this is money well spent, because if a loved one was quarantined in Wuhan, China, you wouldn’t care one bit about the cost of bringing them home.

That being said, the cost of evacuating South Africans from Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus (or COVID-19), is going to mount, and a report seen by the Mail & Guardian estimates the total bill should end up being around R80 million.

An official announcement is expected to be made later today, but it’s understood that our Justice, Crime Prevention and Security cluster has agreed to the repatriation.

More from the report:

There are 199 South Africans in Wuhan, of which 132 have asked to be evacuated and 13 have chosen not to leave, according to the department of international relations and co-operation. A further 54 people are yet to be traced.

The decision follows an interministerial sub-committee, the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (Nat Joints), offering two options — leave or stay — for South Africans in China, where Covid-19 has claimed more than 2 500 lives.

According to confidential reports circulating among senior government officials, Nat Joints has crafted a contingency plan and identified quarantine facilities for the returning citizens. “The decision to repatriate is in the interest of South African citizens in Wuhan … measures have been put in place to avoid the spread of the virus in the country,” said a note seen by the M&G.

Due to our constitutional rights, the South African government is obliged to support citizens who may be in “mortal danger” abroad.

Here at home, various health organisations have been hard at work prepping for the potential arrival of the virus (or eventual arrival, depending on who you believe), so this repatriation should put our measures to the test.

The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has been asked to assist with the evacuation, and two bases near Bloemfontein have been looked at as potential quarantine zones.

[source:mg]