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| Credit HK Gov. |
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Japan has elected to quarantine 3,700 people for 14 days aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship - currently berthed in Yokohama - after 64 of its passengers and crew tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
Hong Kong, meanwhile, has a cruise ship (World Dream) with a similar complement of passengers and crew on hold - not because any of them have tested positive - but because a passenger disembarked that ship on January 24th and subsequently fell ill with the virus.Since only the crew remained aboard after the infected passenger left, officials have decided to run coronavirus tests on them (and any symptomatic passengers), in order to cut down the quarantine time. If no crew members test positive, the passengers can be assumed to be uninfected, and can be released.
But it will take at least 4 days to test all 1,800 crew members. And until they all can be cleared, the ship will remain in quarantine.
Cruise ship employees tested for new coronavirus
February 8, 2020
Liang Yaokang, chief port health director of the Port Health Division of the Center for Health Protection, said that the Center will conduct a new coronavirus test for all employees on the World Dream cruise ship, and that employees and passengers must remain on board before the results are available.
Liang Yaokang attended a press conference today to explain the latest progress of World Dream's health and quarantine work. He said that as of 4 pm today, a total of 35 employees and nine passengers had fever or symptoms of upper respiratory tract infection, and all samples taken from them were negative to the new coronavirus.
He pointed out that the persons who had previously been diagnosed with the new coronavirus and the passengers who had been in contact with the patients were disembarked on January 24. There is no direct contact between the passengers on board and those who have been contacted by the confirmed or confirmed persons.
However, most of the employees on board may have contacted the diagnosed person or the passengers whom the diagnosed person had contacted from January 19 to 24. It is more than 14 days from the time when the confirmed person disembarked.
After listening to the report of the Center for Health Protection, the panel of experts, as the characteristics and details of the new coronavirus are still difficult to grasp, it is recommended that all staff on board be tested for the new coronavirus.
Liang Yaokang pointed out that with more than 1,800 employees on board, it is expected that it will take four days to test all employees. All crew and passengers must remain on board until the test is completed and results are obtained.
