Roissy Airport (France) (AFP)

"We had no control, I may be carrying the virus," quips a French expatriate. On arrival at Roissy of the first flights from China, the epicenter of a new epidemic of coronavirus, the passengers were surprised on Sunday morning by the "light" sanitary system at the airport.

At the exit of the plane, "there were a dozen rescuers and 2-3 gendarmes", tells AFP Claude Laubrieut, one of the first French to leave the Air France flight from Shanghai shortly before 6:00 am .

"They gave us fairly basic instructions. There was no questionnaire, no temperature control, they didn't even ask where we were from in China," said the father who was accompanied by her daughter.

"I'm quite surprised. In Shanghai, the authorities control everything and everyone. There, it's light."

He left behind a "dead" megalopolis. "Everyone stays at home. The museums, cinemas, restaurants ... are closed," laments this French national who works in a Norwegian company.

In China, the toll of the viral pneumonia epidemic in China has risen to 56 dead and nearly 2,000 people are infected, according to the latest official report Sunday. Almost all of the victims were in the Wuhan region, in the center of the country. In France, three cases of contamination were confirmed on Friday, the first in Europe.

At Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport, the police officers on patrol are now wearing masks and rubber gloves.

Most Chinese nationals, all wearing masks, refuse to speak at the landing gate.

Zhenji, visiting Paris, explains that he received "just a piece of paper" when leaving the plane.

"I know what to do in case of fever, you have to call and ask for help," says the young woman, who explains that "in China sanitary controls are stricter".

- "Thermal machine" -

A few posters with health instructions are scattered in Terminal 2E, where most flights from China arrive, around 20 on average per day.

Only the Paris-Wuhan routes have been suspended since Thursday in accordance with "the recommendations of the health authorities," said an Air France spokesperson.

Sporting a colorful mask with patterns of teddy bears and toy cars, Juliette Morlaix was greeted by "a big team from the Red Cross".

"They offered us masks, but most of the people on the plane had masks," said the 21-year-old traveler who returned from Australia. "They gave me a piece of paper, it looks like the same instructions as the flu: use disposable tissues, put on masks and they told everyone to call 15 if there was a problem."

During his stopover in Shanghai, the control was very different: "we went through the thermal machine" which checks the temperature, "we had to go one by one", explains Juliette.

"We did not have any control, I may be carrying the virus, I am likely to transmit it to you, I have absolutely no idea!" Quips Corentin De Gastines, from Hong Kong .

He also indicates that he "received a paper" with instructions.

"In Hong Kong, they control the temperature with a gun. Reliability I don't know, but, in my opinion, it still makes a first filter," said the young father who returned to France for "not being under bell ".

"I'm not afraid but we have no information" in China, says the Frenchman. "For three weeks they hid the thing from us (editor's note: the virus), maybe they are still hiding things from us, so I think we have to be careful," analyzes the engineer.

© 2020 AFP