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2nd flight of U.S. evacuees from China arrives at MCAS Miramar

The plane landed at MCAS Miramar shortly before 8:50 a.m. It was not immediately clear how many passengers were on board.

SAN DIEGO — A second plane carrying evacuees from Wuhan landed at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar this morning after a brief stopover in Vancouver, British Columbia.

The plane landed at MCAS Miramar shortly before 8:50 a.m. It was not immediately clear how many passengers were on board.

Personnel with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will receive the travelers as they begin a two-week, federally mandated quarantine. 

Details were not given on where the arriving group would be housed but prior to the first arrivals, base officials said evacuees would reside in the base's Consolidated Bachelor's Quarters or Miramar Inn.

On Thursday evening, the U.S. Northern Command - which provides command and control of Department of Defense (DOD) homeland defense efforts and coordinates defense support of civil authorities - tweeted about two flights that had departed China.

The agency reported that there were approximately 300 passengers on board with one flight bound for MCAS Miramar from Vancouver, Canada, and the other would head to Travis Air Force Base before continuing on to Lackland Air Force Base in Omaha, Nebraska, according to USNORTHCOM.

The first plane of U.S. evacuees to arrive in San Diego flew in Wednesday morning with 167 people on board. Hours after the plane arrived four people, including a 4-year-old girl, were hospitalized. A fifth patient was transported to a hospital Thursday. 

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Doctors said they were awaiting test results from the CDC to determine if any of the patients are infected with coronavirus. Those results are expected as early as Saturday morning.

A Columbus Ohio native who happens to have family in San Diego was among the 167 passengers quarantined at MCAS Mirarmar, "They [MCAS Mirarmar] are fine, the people here are great, everyone trying to be positive," said John McGory. 

He lived and taught English in Wuhan for six years and retired before the outbreak. McGory says they are not required to wear masks but he does indoors, and health officials are constantly monitoring their health. 

"They test your temperature every time you get something to eat just about anytime you move," said McGory.

The retired teacher says at times it has taken an emotional toll but he hopes to remain positive. 

"I'm not a fatalist. I've never have been, and treat people with and make them feel better about the situation," said McGory. 

Dr. John Bradley, medical director of infectious diseases at Rady, said there was no threat to the public at large or to other patients in either facility.

"Nobody who comes to Rady or UCSD has to worry at all, even if the patients test positive -- which is unlikely," he said. "We have really good isolation policies and they are in special rooms designed for Ebola, which is far worse than coronavirus."

Coronavirus is a respiratory illness with similar symptoms to a cold or influenza in most patients, including a fever and difficulty breathing. Both hospitals are following CDC protocol and treatment guidelines.

The 167 people who arrived from China on Wednesday are under a government-mandated two-week quarantine due to possible exposure to the potentially deadly disease. Medical personnel with the CDC met the arriving flight at the northern San Diego military base after it touched down shortly before 9:30 a.m., officials said.

Nearly 200 Americans arrived at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside on Jan. 29 and are quarantined there after being evacuated from Wuhan.

A child among the group was taken to Riverside University Medical Center on Monday night after developing a fever, but the child was later cleared and allowed to return. A second child from the group was taken to a hospital Wednesday for observation.

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President Donald Trump tweeted early Friday that he "just had a long and very good conversation by phone with President Xi of China. He is strong, sharp and powerfully focused on leading the counterattack on the Coronavirus. He feels they are doing very well, even building hospitals in a matter of only days. Nothing is easy, but he will be successful, especially as the weather starts to warm & the virus hopefully becomes weaker, and then gone. Great discipline is taking place in China, as President Xi strongly leads what will be a very successful operation. We are working closely with China to help!"

As of Wednesday evening, the coronavirus epidemic had claimed at least 560 lives, with more than 28,000 infections, mostly in China. The respiratory illness is treatable, and many patients are recovering, according to reports.

There have been 12 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the United States, with six of those in California, including one case each in Los Angeles and Orange counties. Temporary quarantine and processing sites have been established at major airports, including LAX.

The virus was first identified by the Chinese government on Dec. 31, when authorities indicated an unknown pneumonia variant was infecting residents of Hubei province.

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