More than two hundred Americans who were evacuated from Wuhan, China, due to the new fatal strain of coronavirus, cheered when their plane landed in Alaska on Tuesday night. It was a moment of relief and joy, even when fitness staff rushed to make sure passengers were not carrying the respiratory virus.
“The whole plane exploded with joy when the team said, “Welcome to the United States, ” said Anne Zink, Alaska’s leading medical officer. She described the scene as “a moving and uplifting experience. “
The chartered aircraft, a Kalitta Air Boeing 747, took off to March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County, about 65 miles east of Los Angeles, and landed shortly after 8 a. m. local time, according to the Flightradar24 online flight tracking page.
The robbery was organized through the U. S. State Department. But it’s not the first time For diplomats, their families and other Americans to leave Wuhan, the city in the midst of the developing epidemic.
Prior to traveling to California, the 201 passengers on board had already undergone 4 fitness checks: two in Wuhan before their flight took off and two after arriving in Anchorage.
Passengers were “allowed to continue their adventure to California through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,” the Alaska Department of Health and Human Services said Wednesday in a press.
In California, passengers will be screened and “temporarily accommodated for some time,” said the Alaska Department of Health.
Passengers will remain at the airbase in March for further screening. During their stay, they will be cared for through the Ministry of Health and Social Services. In connection with his arrival, Defense Department press officer Alyssa Farah said: “DoD Corps workers will not be in direct contact with evacuees and evacuees will not have access to any critical location other than their assigned accommodation. “.
Evacuees will be strictly monitored for any symptoms of coronavirus and if they get sick, they will be taken to a local civilian hospital, Farah said.
“Alaska is proud to make its component to help our fellow citizens get a home safely,” Gov. Mike Dunleavy said, applauding the rigorous checks passengers have passed. “For our fellow citizens on the plane, we wish you all the best of luck on your trip to California and despite everything at home. “
Since first learned in Wuhan last month, the new coronavirus, or 2019-nCoV, has killed 132 people, all in mainland China. Lately there are more than 6,000 cases shown, according to a tracking map created through Johns Hopkins.
The vast majority of cases are also found in China, mainly in Hubei Province, where Wuhan has undergone a virtual blockade in an attempt to prevent it from spreading the virus, but coronavirus cases have given the impression on more than a dozen others. countries, adding up the United States and Canada.
Several airlines have suspended or reduced their flights to China, from British Airways to airlines in South Korea and Indonesia. Kazakhstan has interrupted all public shipments – flights, trains and buses – to neighboring China.
As with the U. S. evacuation flight, a Japanese flight from Wuhan landed safely in Tokyo on Wednesday.
“Of course, decisions on the evacuation of citizens belong to countries,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday. “But one thing he warns is that they deserve to be prepared in case of importation. a complete and complete understanding of his actions. “
The CDC says that if it considers the early threat posed by coronavirus to be “low,” users deserve to avoid what is not essential to China.
“The epidemic is expanding and good enough health care is limited in affected areas,” the CDC said this week.
The firm also recommends that others take undeniable measures to lessen the threat of the spread of any respiratory disease, such as washing their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and avoiding close contact with sick people.
MERrit Kennedy of NPR contributed to this report.