Health Alert - U. S. Embassy Lome, Togo (March 30, 2020)

Location: Lome, Togo

Event:

The Department of State issued a Global Level 4 Health Advisory for COVID-19 on March 19. The U.S. Embassy Lome urges U.S. citizens who want to return to the United States to depart Togo promptly. If you prefer to stay, then you should be prepared to remain in Togo for an indefinite period. We encourage U.S. citizens to investigate all possible routes for returning to the United States, even if that means arriving at a different airport or by a different airline than originally planned.

The U.S. Department of State is currently not organizing evacuation flights for U.S. citizens from Togo as commercial flights remain available. Evacuation flights organized by the U.S. Department of State are not free-of-charge and are often more expensive than purchasing a return ticket on a regular commercial flight. Although Air France and Brussels Airlines have temporarily suspended flights to Togo, Ethiopian Airlines still operates direct flights from Lome to Houston and Newark several times a week. These flights may be subject to unexpected cancellation due to reduced passenger loads or changes in federal regulations. If you wish to return to the United States but your Ethiopian Airlines flight has been unexpectedly cancelled, you should contact Ethiopian Airlines’ Lome ticketing office for assistance. The U.S. Embassy is unable to assist in booking or re-booking a flight.

Please note travelers who have been to specific destinations must travel to certain airports. For the most current information regarding COVID-19, the March 11 and March 14 Presidential Proclamations that deal with this subject and their impact on travel to the United States, please visit www.coronavirus.gov, www.dhs.gov/coronavirus and www.whitehouse.gov. If you are a U.S. citizen in Togo and need assistance in passing checkpoints outside of Lome in route to a scheduled departing flight at the Lome International Airport, please send to consularlome@state.gov a scan of your U.S. passport, the license plate number of your vehicle, and the city, date, and time of your departure.

Actions to Take:

Consult the CDC website for the most up-to-date information.
For the most recent information on what you can do to reduce your risk of contracting COVID-19 please see the CDC’s latest recommendations.
Visit the COVID-19 crisis page on travel.state.gov for the latest information.
Check with your airlines or cruise lines regarding any updated information about your travel plans and/or restrictions.
Visit our Embassy webpage on COVID-19 for information on conditions in Togo.
Visit the Department of Homeland Security’s website on the latest travel restrictions to the U.S.