Businesswoman returns to U.S. from China amid coronavirus fears

ATLANTA - A businesswoman with ties to Atlanta says she's thankful to be back in the U.S. after a trip to South China.

Alix Moore was in China at the start of the deadly coronavirus outbreak. While the area she was in wasn't where the virus was primarily concentrated, Moore says she still has major concerns.

"I think the worst part is eating because you have to take your mask off," Moore told FOX 5's Marissa Mitchell.

Moore, a global sourcing and hair expert, lived in Atlanta for 12 years and has a strong customer base here. She said she left China early Thursday as the situation grew worse.

Video she took at a grocery store just days ago showed the effect the virus scare has had on the country.

"They don't have onions, bell peppers, asparagus, broccoli," Moore says in the video. "Thank god I have broccoli at home."

Moore says the cities are eerie right now.

"In most apartments that are gated, they take temperatures. If you have a fever you are not going into your home," she said. "It was total fear in the air. When you walk near someone they will walk far away from you."

That fear made Moore book her trip home. And she says it even stuck with her on the flight back.

"I slept under the cover," she said. "I had my mask on and the cover on top of me so I wasn't really playing no games. Everybody was really really scared. You should have seen the way I was on the plane.

Moore says though she's out, she's worried about some of her American and African friends in China who are having difficulty leaving.