2/26/2020
08:45 Breakfast is here!
Cheese omelette with some hash browns, yogurt, and a cinnamon roll. It was a little weird, so we split a leftover patty melt!
09:00 We had our temperatures taken – 97 for Rachel, 97.6 for me!
12:00 I took a long nap again, and instead of lunch Rachel and I split another patty melt. The lunch was fish(?) with mashed potatoes, vegetables, and a cream filled roll. There was also a weather alarm drill.
16:00
All luggage for Lackland has officially been delivered!
The big divot right now is getting us processed, planned, and moved out of Lackland. Discharge planning is underway.
Zero new cases today again! Looking good for the end of our quarantine.
We have 4 cases still here, and 4 cases that tested positive in japan that are being retested.
Today was the final day for voluntary testing.
Q: For all of us from Diamond Princess who may have resisted the virus, are we at more risk of catching it from our community? If we had a small dose of the virus and didn’t know it, are we more or less susceptible?
A: I’ll lay out what I know. There’s no evidence to show that you would be more susceptible. If you have had a low level of infection but didn’t know it, we really don’t know if you’d have more immunity. We haven’t figured it out yet for covid-19.
Q: Do we need to wear our masks to protect others when we are released?
A: After quarantine, we feel comfortable sending y’all out and interacting with your communities.
They are looking at what we will need to do to mitigate the outbreak as the infection spreads closer to America – hand washing, don’t touch your face, covering your mouth with your shoulder when you cough or sneeze, etc. kind of the same things you do to stay healthy on a day to day basis.
The media has somehow gotten a hold of our town hall call in – private matters will be addressed outside of the call.
We will have transport to an undisclosed location + the airport.
After we clear with the CDC, at 0800 we’ll receive a green wrist band meaning that we’re cleared.
We’ll then clear the human services tent, and receive a checkout sheet. This helps us get to where we need to go. Case managers will help with this. They will ask for departure times as well, with final destinations. Special requests I.e wheelchairs are available upon request. We will get a bus wrist band as well. A VA tent will be available. The final station for the base? Phone delivery! The phone we’ve been given must be returned. Lastly, we go to a luggage processing station – we must tag our own bags. The buses will depart as they fill. It will be a ~50 person bus. Partners from the cruise line will be available to help us get home. Ambassadors will be waiting for us at the airport to get us through the airport/where we need to go. The undisclosed location will be disclosed 48 hours from departure. Again, I will not be disclosing this location publicly until after we are home.
Q: Can we take a taxi?
A: We’ll figure it out.
Q: When we’re done with quarantine – do we still need to wear our mask?
A: We want everyone to still wear their PPE until after our final check in the morning. Once we figure out that no one has any symptoms or temperature, everyone can be released from quarantine. Some people will remain here for a few days due to close contact with those who were infected.
Q: Will we have dedicated TSA/ticketing at the airport?
A: No, BUT – there will be details on your handouts. We don’t want to disclose any of this to the media.
People are calling Princess to book their flight, but Princess is asking for CDC clearance before booking. The team will talk to Princess about this.
Q: For those with spouses in the hospital, how will we travel?
A: You’ll be in a hotel paid by Princess, and we’ll work on travel plans.
An Ash Wednesday service will be available tonight over the phone. We received a packet of ash.
Q: Do we need to reserve a seat on the bus so we don’t miss our flight?
A: Everyone will have a seat – when the bus is full, it will leave.
17:33 Hey everyone – many of you have mentioned a gofundme account being started. My wife and I didn’t want to start one, but given the amount of lost wages + rent coming due, we felt like it might be a good idea to have one. Thank you all for being so supportive! *EDIT, worked paid me, I will be paying excess to charity & donating to our cabin attendant.
18:30 I’d like to thank all of you for sending all of the care packages to everyone! You’ve made everyone’s life so much better here. Here is a picture from Sarah, who we all sent care packages to about a week ago.
“I did have friends and family send stuff too, but that right there is from ONE day and I had 3 just like that. ” – Sarah A., care package receiver
“Please, THANK EVERYONE for the most amazing birthday I’ve EVER had!!! Just wow! 🌸” – Sarah A., care package receiver
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Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2020 Tyler Torres
Hi Tyler. I have been keeping up with your story from the get-go. It’s pretty incredible and certainly will be a memory to tell your grandkids! Maybe you could even write a book or do a documentary someday. Who knows how this will impact the world, we are all waiting and watching. I am also a nurse, graduated from TTUHSC and currently back in school there for my NP. I work in Dallas too, but I’m peds, so, probably right next door to ya! Anyway, I sure wish you guys well. I am sorry to hear about your grandmother. Best wishes on getting home soon.
We are in the process of writing a book, and are in contact with a documentary director/producer! Hey, I graduated there as well! Congrats on NP school.