A flight carrying 201 American passengers landed Wednesday morning at a military base in California after stopping for health checks in Anchorage, Alaska.
Health officials screened the group for coronavirus in China, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention screened the passengers again at a stop in Alaska, according to The Associated Press.
All passengers passed their screenings upon landing at March Air Reserve Base in Southern California and will continue to have health checks while in temporary housing. The base is about 65 miles from Los Angeles. (RELATED: CDC Confirms Wuhan Coronavirus Case In Chicago As China Locks Down Travel In More Cities)
“Our primary objective is to facilitate the safe return of these Americans while protecting the public’s health,” the CDC and Health and Human Services wrote in a statement. The incoming Americans were originally scheduled to be held for at least 72 hours and monitored as part of the repatriation process.
In the wake of #2019nCoV #coronavirus, @HHSGov & CDC are supporting safe, expedient departure of approximately 200 US citizens from Wuhan, China back to the US. @StateDept leads the safe and expedient ordered departure of US citizens. Full details: https://t.co/SJfZhS9YAo
— CDC (@CDCgov) January 29, 2020
Officials estimate that the number of those infected with coronavirus has reached 6,150 as of Wednesday morning, surpassing the 5,327 patients from China’s 2002-2003 SARS outbreak, AP reported. The death toll rose to 132 as of press time.
The CDC has confirmed five cases of coronavirus in the United States.
Symptoms of coronavirus include coughing, fever, shortness of breath and tightness in the chest.
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