President Donald Trump said Thursday that the military is working to bring back 1,400 U.S. citizens who are stranded in Peru under strict quarantine orders.
"We have a group of young people in Peru and we’re working on taking care of that with the military,” Trump said.
The Americans in Peru and their families are using social media to draw attention to their cause using the hashtag #stuckinperu.
Among those unable to leave is Daniel Vaughn and his family. Daniel is the Barbecue Editor at Texas Monthly Magazine who has appeared in several episodes of Verify Road Trip on WFAA-TV.
When the president of Peru announced he was closing the border, that gave Americans 28 hours to leave the country. Vaughn booked a flight home and waited in line until authorities closed the airport.
“The police came in with bullhorns into the airport in Lima and announced to everyone that if they didn’t have a seat on a plane that they needed to leave the airport. Because there were no more seats left,” he said.
Trump blamed the Americans for getting stuck even as he pledged to help.
“They got caught. They were late with their flights. We gave them a period of time, they didn’t make it, but we’re looking to get them out probably through the military,” he said.
Vaughn said he knew that the trip, which had been planned for months, could present some problems but nothing like this.
“It’s a major inconvenience yes. But it’s not like we’re in some incredibly dangerous situation that we immediately need to get extracted from just because we’re not on our own couch,” he said.
On a lighter note, Vaughn, who writes about smoked meats from around the world, will be going home without tasting cuy, a Peruvian dish of smoked guinea pig.
“I haven’t tried one and it looks like I’m not going to get the opportunity to try one,” he said.
More from verified COVID-19 stories:
- VERIFY: NIH study shows coronavirus can survive hours in the air, days on surfaces
- VERIFY: Families with students can get free home internet if they didn't have it before
- VERIFY: A person can test positive twice for coronavirus
- VERIFY: US vs Italy coronavirus comparison leaves out important context
- VERIFY: Text messages about national quarantine and 'Stafford Act' are fake
- VERIFY: How prepared should I be for COVID-19?