Travelers to Northern California caught off guard by new mandatory 14-day quarantine

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) – Passengers arriving at Mineta San Jose Airport were surprised to learn of the new mandatory travel directive requiring travelers to quarantine themselves at home for 14 days due to the increase of COVID-19 cases in the county.

The mandatory order went into effect at 12:01 a.m. Monday morning and covers all travelers returning from travel 150 miles outside of the Santa Clara County borders or beyond.

The new mandate issued by the Santa Clara County Public Health Department includes both residents and non-residents.

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Essential workers, people traveling across the county (not staying overnight) and patients seeking treatment in the county are the only exemptions from the new order.

“We need to slow this train down now,” said James Williams, Santa Clara County lawyer. “We know that it is not enough to act locally. We are not an island, we are well aware of this, and that is exactly why we desperately need bold, aggressive and swift federal and state action.

The mandatory directive went into effect when the county reported 801 new cases on Monday, the highest daily number since the start of the pandemic.

Hotels and other accommodation establishments may only remain open for essential travel or to facilitate isolation or quarantine. Officials say the measures are intended to help preserve hospital beds throughout the county.

“Nobody told me anything,” said Najee Russell, arriving Monday morning at Mineta San Jose airport. “You have to get the word out for something to happen.”

As of Monday morning, no notice was posted inside San Jos Airport, nor any leaflet explaining the order provided to travelers.

The short turnaround time since the county announced the order over the weekend presented a challenge for airport officials trying to comply with the transit facility notification requirements outlined in the new mandate.

“No the county didn’t tell me, but I got notified on my phone,” said Tanika Hampton, who heard about the notice from a news agency before boarding her flight to departure from Vegas.

An airport spokesperson told ABC7 News that notices will be posted at the airport and provided to travelers by the end of the day. We returned Monday afternoon and saw information leaflets printed to alert travelers.

“Arriving travelers should take a copy and read it to fully understand the requirements set out by the county and I think this will help spread the word and grab the attention of travelers,” the spokesperson said. SJC Airport, Scott Wintner. “You can’t miss it when you leave the secure area of ​​the airport.”

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Russell fears that complying with the new mandatory order will mean he will have to take time off work.

“I doubt anyone is going to quarantine for two weeks. We just left Thanksgiving, it’s probably a week off. Who wants to take two more weeks?” he said.

The county has law enforcement officers specializing in business compliance, but officials admit there is not enough bandwidth to verify individual cases.

“We cannot apply all the measures. We really depend on the public to take action to protect everyone, ”said Dr. Sara Cody, Santa Clara County Health Officer. “Every person in the county, every industry, every business, we all need to come together.”

The ordinance is in effect until changed or canceled by the county health officer.

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