Some 195 evacuees from Wuhan, China, who on Jan. 29 transited through Anchorage International Airport’s North Terminal on their way home, have been released from their quarantine at March Air Force Base in Riverside County, Calif.
The group, released on Feb. 11, was under a 14-day federal quarantine for COVID-19, the flu virus that originated in Wuhan, to ensure they were not contagious. It was the first federal quarantine in nearly 60 years.
“All 195 evacuees have completed final health check” and “pose no health risk,” said Dr. Nancy Knight with the Centers for Disease Control.
The photo above was released by the Riverside County Department of Public Health, as some of the travelers threw their surgical masks into the air in celebration. None are expected to need follow-up testing, the CDC said.
While at the Air Force base, they were housed in the bachelors quarters, a series of apartments, and were able to take part in various activities, such as Zumba classes, while at the same time their temperatures were taken multiple times each day.
When the cargo plane carrying the passengers, mostly American diplomats and their families, landed in Anchorage, there were reported to be 201 passengers onboard. The number released by health officials from the March AFB quarantine is 195, with no explanation for the discrepancy.
To date, more than 69,289 people have contracted the COVID-19 virus, and 1,689 have died as a result. The virus has surpassed the fatalities from the 2003 outbreak of SARS.
