"It's unreal!" : thousands of French people stranded in Morocco because of the coronavirus

The situation in Morocco is chaotic since the decision of the Cherifian Kingdom to suspend all these air and maritime lines with France this Friday. This Saturday morning, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Yves Le Drian, announced measures "to facilitate the return of our compatriots from Morocco" after an exchange with his counterpart from overseas, the situation of the French on the spot remains unclear, according to several testimonies collected by Le Parisien. "The necessary authorizations for the organization of return flights will be given," said the minister on Twitter. "Our embassy in Morocco and the ministry's crisis center are fully mobilized," he adds. But you still have to be able to reach her.

Indeed, a few thousand French tourists, traditionally the largest contingent of visitors to Morocco, are stranded, mainly in Marrakech and Agadir, but also in Fez or Tangier, since the suspension of flights to France and other European countries , according to a diplomatic source in Rabat.

"We only heard I don't know "

"We had to come back this Saturday, so we arrived at the airport very early, when we learned of the cancellation of our flight yesterday (Editor's note, Friday) late at night", explains Baptiste, 23, an employee of a large area, came to Marrakech on vacation for a week. “There was the complete lack of communication. We only heard I don't know . Are there going to be planes? I do not know. Can we buy tickets? I do not know. Are we going to be repatriated? I don't know, ” explains the young vacationer in distress.

"It was incredible, unreal," says Baptiste. We have no explanation, no response from Transavia, our company. It is impossible to reach the embassy and, in addition, there is panic at the airport where, according to the latest news, they wanted to evacuate the French, ”says the young employee, who returned to the city center while waiting more information.

Blocked in #Morocco, in #Marrakech, the French chant "MACRON UN AVION" pic.twitter.com/NNGExfqETd

"As we are waiting, we re-rented an Airbnb so as not to end up on the street, at our expense of course", laments Baptiste, a bit fatalistic.

Same story with Clémence, Antonin and their one and a half year old daughter, who were only to spend the weekend in Marrakech. They don't know when they can leave. "We had to come back Sunday and, on Friday, the embassy told us that the flights would not be suspended until Monday, so we did not worry," says Clémence. And then this Saturday morning, they learned that all the flights were canceled.

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"We immediately looked for tickets on the Internet to other European capitals," says Clémence. But they are not the only ones to have had this idea. Result, they found only one Marrakech-Geneva for ... March 23.

The crowd at Marrakech airport

The words of the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Yves Le Drian did not really reassure them. "We have no information, on who will be on these flights, when they will take place and how we will be notified," says Clémence. Like her, her husband was scheduled to return to work on Monday.

"We are divided between taking our pain in patience and fighting," they explain. With their 18-month-old daughter and Clémence being 6 months pregnant, they dare not go to the airport where it is a crowd. "And then, even if there are few cases of coronavirus in Morocco, we can not help but stress: and if we fall ill here, far from home, who will take care of our daughter? "

Overpriced tickets to try to return to France

Also in Marrakech, Madina, pay manager who must return only Tuesday, also preferred to leave the airport where she had come "fishing for news". "It's a virus nest, it's really not reassuring. It is the travelers themselves who take passports to identify the French who are struggling, ”said the 27-year-old woman.

"At the embassy, ​​which we ended up having, we were told to take a ticket with the Royal Air Maroc, over 1000 euros! Bitterly notes this Lille girl on vacation for a few days with a friend.

VIDEO. Blocked in Morocco because of the coronavirus: "If we get sick here, access to care will be difficult"

"We just hope that we are allowed to return to France as Trump did for the Americans by leaving us three days to return," said Madina, who works for a big company, worried that she could not find her job there. next week.

Fleur, a professional dancer, is she still… in the Moroccan desert! She observes, on social networks, the possibility of a hypothetical return. “The airlines had certified me that they maintained their flights. My return flight is scheduled for Tuesday, and until then no news from Air France, but obviously no more flights would leave… The last one was scheduled at 12:30 pm, ”quips the young woman.

"So I'm in the middle of the desert and relatively far from all this hustle and bustle. But it's frustrating to think that I can't go home in peace, says Fleur. And I looked to do Marrakech-Paris via Switzerland. It's a 20 hour journey at 1,500 euros a ticket… It's unreal. So we're going to stay here until this madness subsides. "

"We are worried because my husband has cancer"

Some situations, like that of Laurence and her friends, are even more alarming. “We are five French on vacation and returned from a trip to the desert on Friday and learned of the suspension of flights from Morocco with France. Our Ryanair flight of tomorrow has been canceled, ”says the trapped vacationer. “We are worried because my husband has cancer and he is on drug chemotherapy. He only has three more days of treatment, ”says Laurence.

“We reported to the consulate in Fez, to whom we explained our case. We were told that they were saturated with calls and unsure what to do for us, she says, somewhat desperate. They simply took a telephone number to possibly be given priority for a departure in view of my husband's illness. They then went to Fez airport, where chaos reigned. "There was no one from the company telling us what to do. People were crying, many were screaming, ”added the traveler. "The staff took refuge in a glass office to flee the angry passengers," said Laurence again.

Deprived of precise information, these French people got organized. “This Saturday morning, we formed with other passengers a WhatsApp group that works very well and we exchange all the information we have. We are about 50 people on this group. We have rented rooms in a hotel because we have no more accommodation, "she said, desperately waiting for help from the government.

Two Transavia flights in the evening

This Saturday late afternoon, Emmanuel Macron answered the calls of the French, in distress. “To our compatriots stranded in Morocco: new flights are being organized to allow you to return to France. I ask the Moroccan authorities to ensure that everything necessary is done as soon as possible, ”he said on his Twitter account.

And in the evening, the company Transavia announced that it was "authorized to operate two flights to Paris" at 11 pm from Marrakech and at 11:30 pm from Agadir.

Last minute: following agreement of the Moroccan authorities, @transaviaFR is authorized to operate 2 flights this evening to Paris. A departure at 11 p.m. from Marrakech (flight TO2007) and a departure at 11.30 p.m. from Agadir (flight TO2009). Tickets for these flights are on sale on the website.