TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. — During the overnight, planes carrying American passengers of the Diamond Princess cruise ship are now on the ground after arriving in California.
- There were 340 Americans on two charter planes
- COMPLETE COVERAGE: The Coronavirus
One of two charter planes landing at Travis Air Force Base in California. The State Department announced later that 14 of the evacuees were confirmed to have the coronavirus in tests given before they boarded their planes. They were taken to the U.S. because they did not have symptoms, and were being isolated from other passengers, it said.
There were 340 Americans on those two planes.
They are among the more than 380 U.S. citizens who were evacuated on Sunday. Japan's Health Ministry has been carrying out tests on passengers and crew on the Diamond Princess, which is docked in Yokohama, a port city near Tokyo, to see if they have the coronavirus, or as it is officially known as COVID-19.
Officials said they Monday they had confirmed 99 more cases on the ship, bringing the total to 454. The 14-day quarantine for those on the ship was due to end Wednesday.
But, some Americans from the cruise ship believe this evacuation will actually set back their ability to return to normal life because of the quarantine protocols in place at home.
"Are we for sure going to be quarantined for another 14 days? 'Yes.' I didn't like that answer,"
said passenger Karey Maniscalco.
Passengers were two days away from the end of the quarantine period on board the ship.
That wasup until a couple days ago the State Department had told passengers remaining on the ship during the quarantine period that that was the best course of action.
Chinese health authorities reported 2,048 new cases of the virus and 105 more deaths. Another 10,844 people have recovered from COVID-19, a disease caused by the new coronavirus, and have been discharged from hospitals, according to Monday's figures. The death toll is 1,770.
With fears of the virus spreading further, Chinese and residents of nearby countries and territories have begun hoarding supplies of everything from masks and other personal protective gear to instant noodles, cooking oil and toilet paper.
In Hong Kong, local media reported that police had arrested two men and were seeking three others who allegedly stole a load of 60 packs of toilet paper at knifepoint early Monday morning. Supplies of the commodity have become extremely scarce, with often only low-quality imports still available. Police were expected to discuss the matter later.
Another 1,200 doctors and nurses from China's military began arriving in Wuhan on Monday, the latest contingent sent to help shore up the city's overwhelmed health care system with more than 32,000 additional personnel.
The city has rapidly built two prefabricated hospitals and converted gymnasiums and other spaces into wards for those showing milder symptoms, but residents still say they are being wait-listed for beds and even ambulance rides.
Wuhan has accounted for the vast majority of mainland China's 70,548 cases. Some 60 million people in that area and other parts of China are under lockdown in a bid to prevent the virus from spreading further.
For the latest information from the CDC go here.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.