People with Colorado ties in Mideast amid warning from State Department describe hearing booms

It's been a long few days in the Middle East. The war with Iran has meant missile and drone attacks between Iran and Israel and other countries as well. The United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

The U.S. State Department is urging Americans to leave 14 countries in the Mideast, if they can. That's not easy.

"The airports are closed here. They closed down," said Ericka Lewis Mansfield, a former CBS Colorado anchor and reporter now living in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Leaving, she says, is not really an option. But she doesn't feel the need either.

"In the last couple of days, I think things have been relatively quiet here. Things are open," she said.

The family has a holiday homes business. Some travelers have not shown up, others are staying longer. The family moved from their home on the 50th floor of a building to a ground floor rental unit during the crisis out of concern about the safety of getting down from a high floor if needed.

Being caught up in an international conflict is a different feeling for people in Dubai, where very few are native.

"The feeling of safety and security really has been a big part of living here, and it's a big part of why a lot of people have been moving to Dubai and why people visit Dubai," Mansfield said.

It's more complicated for her college-aged son.

Joshua Mansfield, 21, is in his final year at a university in Tel Aviv, Israel.

"My apartment has, like, a shelter in it, so it's just like, an extra bedroom," he explained.

It's called a mamad, which is a safe room with thick walls and blocked windows. The door is thick and metal.

"I'm lucky, not every apartment has a mamad. Some buildings have, like, like, miklatim, like an underground shelter," he explained.

Josh and an Israeli friend were recently in the room after hearing a series of booms. Tel Aviv has been the target of Iranian counterattacks. Israel's defense system has stopped many incoming projectiles, but there's been damage.

He's not in a position to leave either, with no flights out.

"I mean, it's not necessarily possible to leave, even if I wanted to," Josh said.

The attacks have lessened since Saturday, but there's still reason not to spend too much time outside, although they'd been for a walk earlier in the day. At the beach, people were partying on the Israeli holiday of Purim. His friend Amir was staying with him, due to the potential danger getting through the streets back to his mother's home.

But it was worse during the 12-day war with Iran last year, when President Trump claimed Iran's nuclear enrichment program had been "obliterated."

"When the June war happened, like, 10 days into it, I took a car from Tel Aviv to Jordan. And I left from there, but even now, that's not necessarily possible, because, well, Jordan is getting bombed, too."

Mansfield was glad the U.S. and Israel were going after Iran.

"It's a very big threat. It makes sense from Israel's point of view to go in there and destroy, basically, what is left of the launchers, what is left of the missiles and even for the Americans, to be able to take out such a regime."

There is reason for caution he noted, even outside of the Middle East.

"It definitely is possible and a worry that both Israel and the U.S. have had. You can see through official warnings where Israel was telling Israelis abroad to be vigilant."

A ramp up in terrorism remains a possibility beyond the conflict's borders, but in Tel Aviv they will continue to deal with the potential of retribution. Josh and his friend said at the moment they've been watching a lot of movies, while thinking about his family.

"It does concern me, but it's already happening," he said. "Usually it's just Israel that gets hit. Like again in June. But now I get notifications on my phone, like, big explosions heard in Dubai, and I'm worried for my family, and Dubai is known as a safe place."