New Mexico couple quarantined on coronavirus-infected cruise ship that just docked in California

OAKLAND, California -- New Mexico remains one of 17 states without a single coronavirus case, but that doesn’t mean some residents aren’t feeling the impact.

A Los Lunas woman is quarantined with her husband and thousands of others on a cruise ship that docked Monday afternoon at the Port of Oakland after more than 20 cases of coronavirus were reported on that ship.

"It's like being on a movie set, and then you stop and realize, this is us, this isn't a movie, this is real life," said Cynthia Rizzo.

The Grand Princess pulled into the port with more than 3,500 people aboard. Passengers lining the balconies waved and some left the cabins where they had been in isolation to go on deck.

The cruise ship was forced to idle for days off the California coast because of a cluster of coronavirus cases.

Rizzo said she was "amazed at the steps that are being taken to keep people away from us, and making us kind of feel like outcasts, even though we know we have to be that way - it still doesn't feel real."

So far, Rizzo indicated her and her husband both feel fine, but added that "everyday checking to see if we have any symptoms, that's very scary."

Twenty-three people who needed acute medical care had been taken off the ship by late Monday, but it was not clear how many of them had tested positive for the virus, said Shawn Boyd, a spokesman for the California Office of Emergency Services.

Officials have said the unloading will take up to three days. The passengers will be sent to military bases where they will be quarantined or returned to their home countries.

"We don't know where we'll end up, we're hoping we don't get separated," Rizzo explained. "We just don't know what we're facing."

She concluded by saying, "To all of my family, we love you and we miss you, we'll get home as soon as we can."