British Eurostar passenger ‘kicked off’ train and left in France over face mask incident

Grant Shapps warns travellers to hold off on booking travel tests

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The incident occurred soon after the Eurostar train left Paris Gare du Nord at 1.13pm on Thursday. Eurostar rules state that passengers must wear a face mask for the whole journey within the station and on board.

The man involved said that he had been removed from the train after being accused of not “wearing the right type of mask.”

The unidentified man said: “I’ve done nothing wrong and respect all coronavirus rules- this is absolutely outrageous.

“I have absolutely no idea what this is all about, except that a Eurostar staff member has taken a very strong dislike to me and accused me of not wearing the right type of mask.

“Now I’m going to be left alone in France, when all I wanted to do was get home from a work trip.

“This is very cruel treatment. We should all be getting on, not treating each other like this.”

The Independent reported that another passenger, a 32 year old woman from London witnessed the scene.

She said: “It was ridiculous. He was actually being very reasonable, and not swearing or acting in any kind of disruptive way at all-everybody else was on his side, but he was marched off and we didn’t see him again.”

One of the Lille police officers at the scene reportedly confirmed the man had been arrested and said: “We don’t know why, we’ll have to find out.”

The Independent said the Eurostar manager on duty confirmed she had reported the man for wearing the “wrong type of mask.”

Eurostar said in a statement to Express.co.uk: “Eurostar’s conditions of carriage clearly state that face masks must be worn for the entire journey within the stations and on board, and that failure to comply may result in refusal to travel.

“Unfortunately, a passenger on board a service from Paris to the UK on Thursday repeatedly removed his mask both in the station and on board, despite gentle reminders from staff.

“During the journey, the passenger became aggressive and intimidating towards the on-board team, when they politely reminded him to wear a mask as is required under our conditions of carriage.

“Eurostar teams have a responsibility to ensure the safety of all of those on board, and this kind of behaviour towards our staff cannot be tolerated.

“As a result, the passenger was asked to leave the train at Lille station and in this situation it is normal procedure for the police to attend and assist.”

Other coronavirus measures taken by Eurostar include cleaning and disinfecting the trains before every journey.

The train company also has regular hand sanitation points and follows Government guidance on testing staff.

Anyone travelling to France from the UK will need to have proof of vaccination or a negative Covid test from the last 72 hours.

Eurostar also states that unvaccinated non-French residents must have an essential reason to travel to France.

Incidents over mask wearing and coronavirus measures have also occurred on flights around the globe with some passengers having to leave the plane over allegedly breaking the rules.

Most airlines stipulate that passengers must wear a facemask at all times in the airport and onboard unless they are exempt.

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