Virus-stricken ‘Grand Princess’ docks in California
OAKLAND: The cruise ship that spent days circling the waters off San Francisco with people sickened by the new coronavirus returned to land on Monday at an isolated dock, to begin the long process of offloading passengers into quarantine.
The Grand Princess — operated by Carnival Corp’s Princess Cruises — pulled into an unused dock at the Port of Oakland around noon local time, trailed by hovering news helicopters. At least 21 people on board have tested positive for the virus.
The ship’s arrival marked the end of one unexpected ordeal for the more than 3,500 people on board, and the start of another. Offloading the passengers will take two days, and once ashore, most will be whisked to military bases in California and elsewhere for testing and quarantine. The crew, meanwhile, will sail back into the Pacific Ocean, to be quarantined on the ship.
Nineteen of the people who have tested positive for the virus are crew members, while two are passengers. A California man who sailed on the ship’s prior voyage died of the virus last week, prompting state and federal officials to hold the Grand Princess offshore while they searched for a place where it could be brought to land without infecting people nearby.
After the docking, personnel in orange and green vests tethered the ship to cleats. The dock had been hastily prepared to receive passengers, quickly examine them, and then move them elsewhere without coming into contact with the public. The port had been fenced off, with federal security posted on the perimeter.
Teams composed of doctors, nurses and emergency medical technicians will bring out passengers in small groups, to maintain a safe distance in case any are infected.
People showing signs of illness will be given surgical masks and escorted off the ship on a separate gangway, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services.
All passengers will be screened, and those not requiring immediate care will be moved off-site. California residents will be transfered to nearby Travis Air Force Base or the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar for of quarantine.
Foreign nationals will be bused from the ship to a remote portion of Oakland’s airport to board chartered flights, according to officials.