A DJ who was stranded at a music festival in Panama was shocked to see how people were behaving towards the coronavirus after she returned to the UK.

Hetty Nutbeam was in the country to perform at the Tribal Gathering before the country went into lockdown on March 15.

She struggled for two months to get back to her home in Blunsdon, but when she was finally able to catch a flight on May 13 she was shocked to see how relaxed everyone seemed to be back in the UK.

The 47-year-old mum said: “It all felt very surreal when I finally sat down on that plane back home.

"I had already surrendered to the idea that I would have to wait for a long time because I had already been let down twice.

“In Panama, everyone was wearing masks and gloves. But as soon as I landed back in England hardly anyone was wearing masks. People were chatting with each other like everything was normal. I was surprised people weren’t protecting themselves or taking it seriously.”

Hetty had been in Panama since February 25 and planned to travel around the country with her partner Jack Martin for a few more weeks. But everything changed after the pandemic hit.

She said everyone at the festival was quarantined inside and the number of police on the streets rose. “Everyone was just taken aback by it, no one was allowed in or out of the festival."

“All the airports were closed so no one could get home, there were police and embassy escorts taking people back to the Panama City.

“It was mandatory to wear masks, you could only go out to the supermarket and even then you were given specific times for when you could go depending on the last digit of you passport number. If you were out not within your allocated times then you would be arrested or fined.

“We ended up staying in an Airbnb and it was just like waiting in Limbo to get back home. But I’m so glad we made it back, I would have been so sad if I couldn’t get on it again.”

Hetty stayed in touch with her family back home while she was stranded. But she missed daughters Firn, 22, Emba, 20, and 18-year-old Luna who is stuck in South Africa.

Hetty said: “She’s not terribly unhappy and she’s staying with her uncle so she is safe. I just don’t know when I will see her again.”