SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) – A Bay Area woman who has been quarantined on the March Reserve Air Base in Riverside County has been released on Tuesday. 

Esther Tebeka was quarantined due to coronavirus concerns for 14 days.

KRONon’s Noelle Bellow spoke with Tebeka as she was waiting to be picked up after being released.

Tebeka shared that the environment was as comfortable as it could have been and that the government was incredibly accommodating and kind. 

“But a quarantine is a quarantine so we try to, I didn’t do much socialize. I just really, really follow all the protocols. I stayed indoors most of the time, and only in the morning at a 10 a.m. meeting, like a brief meeting every day in a courtyard, the rest of the time pretty much in the room,” Tebeka said. 

In January, Tebeka traveled to Wuhan to visit her mother who was ill, but not with the coronavirus.

Tebeka brought one of her daughters along for the trip.

The two stayed with her brother and toward the middle of January, they noticed more and more people wearing masks.

Tebeka’s brother’s home is in a gated community, therefore, they were safe and separated from much of the community.

Prior to Wuhan being locked down, Tebeka’s brother stocked up on at least a month’s worth of food.

That is when Tebeka began contacting the U.S. Embassy to figure out how and when she will get home.

After struggling to get in contact with the embassy, Tebeka received an email notifying her about an evacuation flight.

Tebeka says thankfully everyone who was quarantined from her flight did not test positive for the coronavirus. 

“There were two babies that went to the hospitals with fever, but it was confirmed that it was not a coronavirus case, so it was just a regular fever,” Tebeka said.

For those who were quarantined, Tebeka says they had a lot of freedom other than the fact that a temporary fence was put up in order to keep everyone protected.

She says it was much like a hotel setting, they were allowed to socialize, and group activities, including Zumba classes, were organized.

Before heading home, Tebeka wants to assure her community, who may be cautious around her, that she is safe but will quarantine herself at home in order to ease their worry.

Tebeka was cleared and received documentation from the CDC confirming that she was not infected.

“We are good to go,” Tebeka said.

Listen to the full interview with Tebeka above.

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