Dallas Residents on Edge After Ebola Patient Diagnosed in City

— -- Dallas residents were on edge today after health officials announced that several students at different schools could have been exposed to Ebola, the deadly disease that has now been diagnosed in the United States for the first time.

Health officials said several additional people in the Dallas area could also have been exposed, adding to the sobering news.

One woman who lives in the Dallas apartment complex where the patient was believed to be staying told ABC News she's considering moving out of fear, because she doesn't want her daughter to be exposed to the disease.

"She goes to school, maybe the virus could spread at school, and we all want the best for our kids," Elizabeth Rayo said. "I think it's better to leave, to go somewhere else."

She recalled seeing an ambulance arrive on Sunday, the day the Ebola patient was put into isolation at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas, but didn't think much of it, she said.

"I don't know what the symptoms are, what you're supposed to be feeling," Rayo added.

Another neighbor said she was also worried about her children.

"This is something scary that I thought would never come here in the United States," she said.

Throughout the city, people were uneasy.

"It's very jarring to know that one of the diseases with the highest mortality rates is right here in Dallas," said Nicole Manrique, who lives nearby in Denton, Texas. "It could be anywhere in the U.S., but it's right here in Dallas and that's terrifying."

Manrique said she's washing her hands more and avoiding personal contact. Parent Christopher Hunt said he's also worried about the disease spreading -- especially because he has children.

"The fear is spreading ... I mean, though it's one person, that affects so many people," he said. "I mean, if I had it, I go home to my family of four, they go to school ... to so many other kids. You don't know what's spreading. There's really no way to stop it."

Hunt added that he called his kids' school and sent them to class with hand sanitizer.

Health officials stressed that the students potentially exposed to the virus pose no risk because people cannot transmit Ebola until they have symptoms.

"Since the students are not presenting any symptoms, there is nothing to suggest the disease was spread to others including students or staff," the Dallas Independent School District said in a statement.

The children are at home and will be monitored for 21 days, the incubation period of Ebola, officials said.