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US tourists stranded abroad desperate to secure return

Linda Scruggs, Mike Rustici
Posted at 9:19 PM, Mar 21, 2020
and last updated 2020-03-21 22:19:57-04

Tourists trapped away from their home countries because of the coronavirus and the plight of a Tennessee couple illustrates the desperation they are facing.

Linda Scruggs and Mike Rustici trained months to hike to Peru's Machu Pinchu Inca ruins and arrived in Peru this month.

Days after they landed, Peru's borders were closed. Scruggs and Rustici were stuck in a hotel for days and say they received little help from the U.S. Embassy in Lima. The couple were eventually able to get on a LATAM Airlines flight that landed Saturday evening in Miami.

They said they felt relieved but also guilty because many other travelers are still stuck.