Ninder Grewal’s trip to her family home in Punjab, India, was supposed to be a celebration. She was going to buy clothes and accessories for her upcoming Sikh wedding and even do some of the traditional ceremonies there.
“Every girl dreams of her wedding,” Grewal said. “I had been looking forward to this trip since I got engaged.”
Instead, Grewal, who lives in San Jose, said her trip quickly became a nightmare as she and her mother tried, unsuccessfully, to get home before India banned all international flights and closed some internal and international borders on March 22 to stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus in a country of nearly 1.4 billion people. Worldwide, some 50,000 Americans are trying to come back to the U.S. amid widespread flight cancellations and border closures, according to data from the U.S. Department of State. Many have criticized the department for what they say is a lack of communication and action to bring them home amid a global pandemic.
“(I’m) just feeling completely abandoned. I’ve never ever felt this way before. I’ve always been super proud to be an American,” Grewal said, adding that she’s heard about people from other countries having trouble but didn’t think it would happen to her. “I’ve always felt like, that’s not how it is in America, that would never happen to us.”
According to a State Department briefing Wednesday, the department has helped repatriate about 9,000 Americans in 28 countries, including Peru. Officials are prioritizing older people and those with medical conditions, but the department estimates there are still some 4,000 Americans in the South American country.
Tammy Phan, an Oakland nurse stuck in Cusco, Peru, was supposed to fly home over a week ago. She said she’s happy there’s progress but it hasn’t been fast enough for many.
“People are running out of money, food, and medications and are desperate to get home,” Phan wrote in a text message. “I’ve offered my inhalers to an older woman who had breathing problems (related to the elevation in Cusco and anxiety).”
Brenda Gonzalez, a spokeswoman for Sen. Kamala Harris, D-California, said her office has heard from more than 100 California residents trying to come home, some of whom are at high-risk for coronavirus.
For Grewal, an attorney with the California Apartment Association, the first sign of trouble came when her fiance and his mother, who were also with her in Punjab, realized their flight home had been canceled. Grewal said they went to the airport in New Dehli a day earlier than planned and were able to find a flight home that day, on March 15. On March 20, when her flight home was canceled without notice, Grewal and her mom went to the New Delhi airport hoping to book another flight. They had to rent an SUV and hire a driver for the 7-hour drive from the village in Punjab where they were staying.
In New Delhi, she said she found people sleeping at the airport and travel agents offering what few tickets were left at exorbitant prices. Eventually, Grewal called her father in San Jose and, through a travel agent in Milpitas, he booked a flight to the U.S. through Turkish Airlines.
Thinking they’d made it, Grewal said they went to a nearby hotel to wait out the 20 hours until their flight. A few hours later, it too was canceled.
Unable to fly home as India started an extensive shutdown and curfew, Grewal and her mom returned to Grewal’s aunt’s house. She tried to sign up for the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, which the State Department has recommended to seek government assistance, but the enrollment page didn’t work on mobile and she has no WiFi access. Eventually, her sister in the U.S. enrolled Grewal. A Google Doc shared among Americans stuck in India lists more than 80 people trying to come back, including nearly two dozen Californians.
Meanwhile, Grewal said government officials have started spraying a disinfectant outside their village and she has seen videos of police officers beating anyone violating curfew so they haven’t left the house. She has a flight booked back to the U.S. March 31 but said it’s almost sure to get canceled. She said she’s urging friends and family in the U.S. to contact government officials in hopes that’ll spur some help.
“It’s a very uncertain world that I’m living in,” she said. “Being in a village with very little information is very frightening.”
As for her wedding in July, the trip to get dresses and accessories has gone to waste. Her wedding cards just arrived at her house in San Jose — faster than she did, she said. If anything, the wedding now will just be her, her fiance and their respective parents, not the traditional weeklong celebration they were planning.