Homecoming after quarantine
Warragul couple Karen and Peter Stoll and their daughter Kimberlee Wright have been reunited with family after a cruise that turned into a corona virus quarantine.
The freedom of walking around a house without facemasks has been the highlight for Peter and Karen Stoll since they returned to Warragul on Thursday after more than 30 days in isolation.
Peter, Karen and their daughter Kimberlee Wright were on board the Diamond Princess when it was placed in quarantine when a passenger was diagnosed with Covid 19 (coronavirus).
After spending more than 14 days on the ship they were finally evacuated to Howard Springs in Darwin where they remained for 14 days, arriving back in Warragul on Thursday night.
Apart from the isolation on board the ship and limited access to other people in Darwin, they said the most difficult time was being away from the rest of the family.
Peter said it was very difficult for Kimberlee being away from her husband for more than two months.
Both Peter and Karen have high praise for the staff on the cruise ship who worked hard to cope with a very difficult situation but believe the Australian government should have evacuated the 150 Australians earlier.
Karen said it was obvious it was going to spread, and the departure date reset as time went on.
They were fortunate to avoid the virus.
“We never showed any symptoms and were temperature checked every day,” Karen said.
“We were looked after very well at Howard Springs and now can safely say it’s over.
Both Peter and Karen said they missed their grandchildren Jack, 5, and Jimmy 18 months, who literally bowled them over when they saw them last Friday.
They missed Jack’s first day of school. By the time they got home Jack was able to write his own name and ride his bike without training wheels.
“They are small things, but they are things we missed,” Peter said.
“Even though we were able to facetime each other it’s just not the same. The little kids don’t understand but now we are home everything is getting back to normal,” Karen said.
Karen has high praise for the Princess cruise company. They have had their cruise costs refunded even though the cruise had concluded when the ship was placed into lockdown.
They have also had a credit to a similar value for another cruise in the future.
“We are not planning anything soon, but I wouldn’t hesitate to go on another cruise,” Karen said.