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Nigerian govt reschedules evacuation date for stranded citizens in the US

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Geoffrey Onyeama

The evacuation date of scores of Nigerians stranded in the United States of America which was earlier scheduled to take place on Sunday, has now been brought back to Saturday.

This was made known on Tuesday by the Consulate-General of Nigeria in New York which announced the changes in a statement issued on behalf of the Nigerian Missions in the U.S.

The Consulate-General of Nigeria in New York also in the statement informed that there would be a change in the flight number from ET 509 announced on Sunday to ET 8509 by the same carrier, Ethiopian Airlines.

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In a notice on Sunday, the consulate had said no fewer than 700 Nigerians registered with the missions in the U.S. for evacuation, to be done in batches.

It said the plane could only accommodate 270 passengers, who would be picked on first-come-first-serve basis.

It, however, said the list of evacuees would be prioritised according to their immigration status.

“This includes the need to consider those stranded with proof of short stay visas, the elderly, and families with children and returning students,” it said.

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