Second plane of quarantined cruise ship passengers arrives at Dobbins Air Reserve

COBB COUNTY — A second plane carrying quarantined cruise ship passengers arrived in Cobb County early Thursday morning.

More than 100 people got off the Grand Princess cruise ship Wednesday afternoon after it was quarantined and held off the coast of California after people on board tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

The first round of passengers arrived at Dobbins Air Reserve Base early Wednesday morning. They are now in quarantine at the base.

[READ: First of quarantined passengers from cruise ship hit by coronavirus arrive at Dobbins ARB]

The state says 34 Georgians will be “securely transferred” to their homes for self-quarantine.

Four of those people are from Cobb County and arrived with the next round of passengers.

Channel 2 Cobb County Bureau Chief Chris Jose has been in contact with Charlotte Hipps, of Cobb County, who was on the ship.

She sent Jose a picture from the window of her seat on a private charter bus that she was on as she was headed to a private plane to head back to Georgia.

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“Everybody was clapping and cheering,” Hipps said. “(We’re on a) bus with very small seats. So, we’re sitting jam to jam in here.”

Pictures Hipps took showed the Grand Princess and the tents set up outside. One lasting image was taken on what was supposed to be Hipps' 80th birthday celebration.

“Then they took us to a tent, where they took our temperature, asked us how we felt, if we have any symptoms. And we said, ‘No.’ They took our name and where we are from,” Hipps said.

Hipps and her friends from Cobb County landed at Dobbins on Wednesday night.

Sources told Jose that more than 100 people were on the flight.

[READ: 34 Georgians, passengers on cruise ship hit by coronavirus are headed to Cobb County]

A military spokesman says none of the passengers are among those who tested positive for the coronavirus, nor do they have symptoms.

“We had heard they landed in Georgia, and we weren’t there. We weren’t on the plane,” Hipps said.

Sources with direct knowledge of the operation say phase two will happen at Clay National Guard Center, where there are five buildings and 195 rooms.

A Dobbins lieutenant says if any quarantined passengers get sick, they’ll be taken to a local hospital.

Two Cobb County passengers told Jose there's a full police escort surrounding their bus.

A Dobbins spokesperson said the first round of passengers started their 14-day quarantine Wednesday.

More than 250 quarantined cruise ship passengers headed to Dobbins Air Reserve Base 34 of those passengers are from Georgia.

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