A RETIRED couple from Lugwardine have found themselves stranded in South Africa as a result of the current coronavirus pandemic.

Ian and Daphne Burton, who are 76 and 79 respectively, have spent every winter since 2006, visiting their daughter and her family, in Port Elizabeth, where they have a bungalow, but, as Daphne explains, "we are always back in Herefordshire for the spring". This year will be different and Daphne adds that she and Ian have no idea when or how they will get back to the UK.

"We were due to come back on April 15, but the country closed down completely on March 26," she says. "There were planes leaving Cape Town up until April 9, but as we are in Port Elizabeth, we had no means of getting there. There are no internal flights at all and Cape Town is 800km away, and Johannesburg is nearer 1000km - we're too old to drive those distances. All the borders between states are closed to stop any travel and so far the level of infection here is low. Lock down here means exactly that - no one is allowed out, and you can get arrested if you're caught." Daphne says. "We haven't been out for five weeks."

"South African Airways notified us that they would book us on a flight as and when ... but now it looks as if they could go bust."

As well as not being able to get back to the UK, Daphne and Ian are also unable to see their daughter, and her family, who emigrated to South Africa 17 years ago.

"We now have two grand daughters who are married with children, so we have four great grand children here as well. Because of the total lockdown here we have not seen them for nearly five weeks, and just see our daughter when she brings our shopping."

Daphne and Ian keep in touch with family back home via Skype and facebook, but, says Daphne: "We would like to be back in the UK, but at the moment I feel we are safer here."

For the first time, the Burtons will experience South Africa past the end of April: "Apparently it gets much colder," with no indication of when they might make it home.

"Until internal flights begin we can't book anything. We hope they'll start flying about June. We will get back eventually."