Passengers quarantined at military base due to coronavirus concerns now free to leave

LOS ANGELES - Approximately 200 people quarantined at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County because of the coronavirus were free to go home Tuesday.

They were being held there after flying from China last month. The number of coronavirus-related deaths in China has now surpassed 1,100 after 97 more people died Tuesday. The World Health Organization officially named the virus “COVID-19.” And the number of cases on board the quarantined Japanese cruise ship has increased to 174.

FOX 11 spoke to one of the evacuees at Los Angeles International Airport who had been quarantined at the base since returning from China. American Jarred Evans had been there with a couple hundred others. They were on the first flight of evacuees from Wuhan after the coronavirus outbreak.

Evans who was playing pro football in Wuhan and the others on the flight, who are from around the world, were checked by CDC doctors twice a day. Tuesday, they were released.

“It was kind of like a graduating moment where everyone was just excited and full of joy," said Evans, talking about a picture of everyone who was quarantined on base, throwing their masks in the air.

“We had a bunch of freedom on base. The kids were running around. You could do everything you needed to do. I personally ran and worked out. People took Zumba classes and art classes. It was almost like a camp, a very secure camp.”

Evans is flying out of LAX to visit family in North Carolina for a few days then off to Switzerland to play football, but his heart is still in China.

“I want to send all my prayers to all my friends and their families because it’s getting a lot worse.”

Evans says, thankfully, everyone quarantined on base was cleared from coronavirus.