A Ryanair passenger has told how men in hazmat suits boarded his flight during a coronavirus scare at Dublin Airport on Monday night.
Mattie Griffin was sitting by the window on his flight which arrived from Poznan when he saw an ambulance and two police cars outside the plane.
Mattie told Dublin Live: "I just thought someone must be sick on the flight. The staff told us to wait. They didn't give us any information which was annoying, people started getting agitated."
The passenger said the mood on the plane changed from anger to fear when he saw men in hazmat suits approach the plane.
He said: "These guys arrived covered head to toe in gear, with masks, heading toward the plane. What popped into everyone's head was 'coronavirus'.
Mattie said the medical staff came onto the plane with masks and big bags. They put masks on two female passengers and escorted them off the plane.
He added: "A few minutes later they told us we could go, but then a couple minutes after that they said we actually had to wait.
"Then 15 minutes later they told us we could go."
A Ryanair official said: "The crew of this flight from Poznan to Dublin called ahead to request medical assistance upon arrival after two passengers became ill onboard.
"As a precautionary measure, the aircraft was met by emergency services. Upon assessment by medical staff, it was deemed safe for passengers to disembark. Further medical examinations were carried out on the two passengers in question, who tested negative for any virus.
"In line with procedures and also as a precautionary measure, the aircraft was disinfected before returning to service.”
A spokesperson with the Department of Health said there is no confirmed case of the COVID-19 virus in Ireland to date.
