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More guests leave Canary Islands hotel locked down over coronavirus
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An employee wears a protective mask as he talks with guests inside a hotel under lockdown after a coronavirus case was identified in Adeje, in the Spanish Canary Island of Tenerife, Spain, February 25, 2020. (Reuters/Christopher Betts )
T
hree small groups of guests left a Tenerife hotel in minibuses on Friday on its fourth day of quarantine over thecoronavirus and at least two people could be seen leaving in an ambulance, but around 700 holidaymakers remained in the compound.
It was not clear where they were being taken or whether those in the ambulance had any symptoms of the virus.
The Canary Islands regional government on Thursday cleared 130 guests to leave the hotel, which was placed on lockdown after four cases of thecoronavirus were detected there, but others showed no symptom of illness.
The Canary Islands health department said the organisation of the guests' departure was a police matter. Police would not comment.
Half a dozen guests, including a baby in a pram, exited the H10 Costa Adeje Palace south of Tenerife, and underwent temperature scans in the back of the hotel before boarding a 15-seater minibus, the video, shot by hotel guest Christopher Betts, showed.
One of the people boarding said he was from Belgium.
Another small group left in a large taxi with darkened windows and five more people left in a second minibus. A large bus and another minibus were waiting in the laoding bay, according to Reuters witnesses.
Inside the hotel, guests were allowed to circulate freely, using the restaurants and swimming pools, as long as they wore protective masks, washed hands regularly and checked their temperature twice a day, according to instructions from the health authority.
Videos from inside the hotel showed guests sunbathing by the pool and others serving themselves at a restaurant buffet. Some guests complained that basic safety measures such as wearing masks and washing hands regularly were being ignored.
Spain's total number of coronavirus cases rose to 32 on Friday. The bulk of them were linked to Italy, the site of Europe's worst outbreak.
One of the cases involved a sports reporter from Valencia who had recently travelled to Milan, and the Valencia football club announced on Friday the suspension of all non-sports indoor events such as news conferences "that present risk to players, coaching staff and club staff".
The coronavirus can spread via droplets in the air when an infected person coughs, sneezes or breathes out, and these can also contaminate surfaces such as door handles and railings.
