AceShowbiz - Actress and new mum America Ferrera was well-prepared as the coronavirus chaos began to unfold in the U.S. because her husband had been "sounding the alarm" for months.

The "Ugly Betty" star was heavily pregnant as the COVID-19 outbreak was officially deemed a global pandemic in March, forcing shutdowns across a variety of industries, including Hollywood.

However, Ferrera didn't need to worry about stocking up on non-perishable foods and essential household goods as others began panic buying, because her husband, Ryan Piers Williams, had already taken care of everything their growing family would need.

"In our house, my husband Ryan was sounding the alarm like, (in December)," she explained on the Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard podcast. "The second he heard this was happening in China, he was like, 'This is what we need, I'm gonna start stocking up.'"

Ferrera admits she wasn't entirely convinced about Ryan's doomsday prediction until U.S. authorities began introducing lockdown measures to slow the spread of the virus - and she's grateful he was paying close attention to global events, because she was too busy wrapping up work on TV comedy series Superstore before she began her maternity leave.

"He's a little OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder), for real, and there are times where that is a bummer for me, his wife, and I definitely was like, rolling my eyes and going, 'OK, go and get a 50 pound sack of beans...,' " she shared.

"But you know what? I really won this time, with his tendency to be prepared."

"He really saw the signs and took it seriously, and I did not."

Ferrera and Williams welcomed their second child, daughter Lucia, on 4 May, and announced the news on Instagram on Sunday (May 10), International Mother's Day.

Baby Lucia is a little sister for the couple's son, Sebastian, who turns two later this month.