FORT WORTH, Texas — Four couples from Granbury found themselves on solid ground for the first time in 18 days Tuesday before boarding a plane headed to Lackland Air Force Base, where they'll quarantine. They'd been on the Grand Princess cruise ship since February 21.
The ship had been circling off California's coast due to 21 coronavirus cases on board.
When WFAA first spoke to Kathleen Reed Tuesday morning, the retired counselor from Granbury was packed and ready to get off the Grand Princess cruise ship and onto firm ground.
"I set the alarm for 5:30 a.m.," she said. "At 6 o'clock our breakfast arrived, and with our breakfast came luggage tags. We are 'Red #1.'"
They also received letters detailing what passengers could expect over the coming days, including quarantine and a move to military bases.
"A quarantine order does not mean you will get sick — or that your symptoms will be severe even if you have been infected," the letter read. "CDC will reassess this quarantine order 72 hours after the initial order was served...Please be advised that if you test positive, CDC may legally detain you until it finds that you are no longer at risk of spreading the disease to others."
WFAA asked Reed if she had concerns about being put on a bus and plane with dozens of other passengers.
"I don’t, and the reason I don’t is because we don’t have any underlying health issues," she said.
Shortly after her video chat with WFAA, Reed, her husband and the three other couples from Granbury they traveled with got the message they were on the move.
After they had their temperatures taken, they packed into a bus labeled "Lack-1" and then put on a plane, which they said was headed to Lackland AFB in San Antonio.
Reed stayed calm and positive during the coronavirus uncertainty on board. She spoke volumes about Princess Cruises and the crew, some of whom contracted COVID-19 while working.
Reed said she's taken half a dozen cruises so far, and she'll take another, even after this experience.
"Absolutely, are you kidding? Princess has given us a free cruise whenever we’re ready," she said.
For now, a plane is their latest mode of transportation as they get one step closer to putting this experience behind them.
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