The U.S. State Department, in conjunction with the Department of Health and Human Services, rescued more than 400 American citizens Sunday night who were quarantined aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship in a Japanese port.
At least 40 of the U.S. residents tested positive for the coronavirus, according to immunologist Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
It was not immediately clear whether the number was in addition to the 20 infected Americans previously reported or if it is a new total, USA Today reported.
The ship had been held in quarantine since Feb. 3 with more than 3,700 passengers and crew on board. Of those, Japanese officials now say 454 tested positive for what is now being called covid-19; 428 of the 3,700 were Americans.
They were airlifted on chartered flights out of Yokohama, Japan and flew to Travis Air Force Base in California, with another flight headed to Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.
But all evacuees had to go immediately into another quarantine after arriving back on U.S. soil.
"Travelers returning to the United States from high-risk areas are required to undergo quarantine. Accordingly, you will need to undergo further quarantine of 14 days when you arrive in the United States," according to an email sent to the passengers on the Diamond Princess two days before the evacuation.
According to officials in China, where the virus began in the Wuhan Province, 66,493 people have been infected with covid-19 and 1,523 have died.
Separately, USA Today reported that the Canadian Embassy in Tokyo has notified Princess Cruises that Canada will provide chartered aircraft to bring back all Canadians quarantined on the ship as well.
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