Local Couple Aboard Grand Princess As It Docks In Oakland, California
OAKLAND, Calif. (KDKA) - The country watched as the Grand Princess made its way under the Golden Gate Bridge and into the Port Of Oakland, California.
19 crew members and two passengers tested positive for the coronavirus on the ship. Another passenger, a 71-year-old man who had been on the ship during a previous cruise died of COVID-19.
It was supposed to be the cruise of a lifetime for a local couple, who want to remain anonymous because of posts they have already seen on Facebook, telling them not to return home for fear property values will drop.
The Grand Princess had been returning to San Francisco after a cruise to Hawaii.
The couple is not infected with the virus.
Just before docking, the husband sent a text saying:
"just completed our first 30-minute exercise period since last Thursday afternoon when onboard quarantine began. Perhaps fewer than 100 people at a time are routed on deck to walk around. Our group got to see us approaching the Golden Gate Bridge."
He went on to say everyone is in good spirits, but it will take a few days to get the 3,500 passengers and crew off the ship.
Sick passengers will get off first, California residents second, followed by other U.S. residents, and then international travelers.
Vice President Mike Pence says it is likely the 1,100 crew members who were exposed to the virus on two cruises will remain in quarantine on the ship.
Just where the passengers will go is still tentative, but some of the passengers will be quarantined at U.S. military bases as far away as Texas and Georgia.
