Britons trapped on cruise ship where ten have the virus
TWO Britons are among thousands of cruise ship passengers confined to their cabins for a fortnight after 10 tested positive for coronavirus.
David Abel, who has already been on board the Diamond Princess with wife Sally for 15 days, said they are now in quarantine.
He said: “It’s just an extended two-week cruise, but it’s not going to be a luxury cruise, it’s going to be like a floating prison.”
The ship, carrying nearly 3,000 passengers, is currently docked in Yokohama, Japan.
Medical checks began after an 80-year-old passenger who left the ship in Hong Kong on January 25 later tested positive for coronavirus.
Officials boarded the ship on Monday night and told passengers they would be running tests on everyone aboard. The diagnosis of the 10 affected passengers was announced and yesterday they were taken to nearby hospitals.
Speaking on a video posted on Facebook, David, 74, of Woodford Halse, Northants, said: “We are now officially in quarantine.
“It appears that our quarantine is on board the ship, that we will not be taken off to a hospital.
“The 10 people that are affected, they are being taken off by the local coastguard into a medical facility.We are to remain on board the ship and we are confined to our cabins.”
The couple said they were left without food for 18 hours over Monday and Tuesday.
David, a diabetic, said he feared going into a coma if he did not eat.
He claims he was told by a member of staff that the food service was temporarily suspended over fears it was where the virus had originated.
A sandwich and some bread rolls were eventually taken to their cabin.
David described how luxury dinners were replaced with rationed food delivered by staff in face masks, adding: “Nothing changed except for food. It now is a sandwich for every meal. We are no longer on a luxury cruise, that’s for sure.”
During medical checks, passengers had their temperature taken, were asked if they had a cough and if they were taking any medication to reduce their temperature.
The couple said they had visited five more ports after the man carrying the coronavirus disembarked.
The 10 people affected – two Australians, one American, three from Hong Kong, three from Japan and one Filipino crew member – were taken to the local hospitals by the Japanese coastguard.
More than 200 others are anxiously awaiting their test results after they were selected for extra screening, as medics in hazmat suits went deckto-deck to test for the virus.
David added: “I think it’s going to be a really good trial, a challenge for everyone on board. How do we cope with it? What are we going to do? How is our mental outlook going to be?We can’t even walk down the corridor.
“This is not the fault of Diamond Princess cruise line, they are complying with the Japanese health authority.”
Meanwhile, the Government is working to charter a final flight to bring British nationals back from coronavirus-hit Wuhan as Britons in mainland China are urged to get out.
The plane is expected to leave on Sunday morning and will land at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, the Foreign Office said.
It is understood 165 Britons and their dependants remain in Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak, while 108 have requested assistance to leave as of yesterday.
A total of 94 UK nationals and family members have already been evacuated to Britain from Wuhan on two flights, on Friday and
Sunday.
‘It’s a challenge for everyone on board. We can’t even walk down the corridor‘