March ARB, Calif., will help with the quarantine of Americans evacuated from Wuhan, China, after the outbreak of the Coronavirus, the Pentagon announced Jan. 29.
The base will house almost 200 U.S. citizens—Department of State employees, dependents, and other Americans—who left the country this week. The Department of Health and Human Services will quarantine and evaluate personnel.
“DOD has assessed this support will not negatively impact readiness or critical operations, and we stand ready for their arrival,” the Pentagon said in a statement.
Military personnel will not be in direct contact with the evacuees, and they will not have access to any base location other than assigned housing. Should evacuees be identified as ill, HHS will transport them to a civilian hospital, according to the statement.
A chartered flight carrying the U.S. citizens left Wuhan on Jan. 28 and briefly stopped at Ted Stevens International Airport for refueling and evaluation of the personnel. The were only allowed to board the flight if they did not show symptoms of illness, according to the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services.