Ship Britons’ ordeal as California won’t let it dock

MORE than 100 British holidaymakers could be trapped on a cruise ship for two weeks after it was stranded off the coast of California.

Tourists on the Grand Princess were being tested for coronavirus yesterday after it emerged a man who had previously been on board had died from the illness and at least four other passengers had tested positive.

The 2,422 holidaymakers, including 142 Britons, were told to stay in their cabins as US authorities airlifted testing kits on to the ship using military helicopters.

The ship was barred from docking in San Francisco after it emerged 11 passengers and ten crew had symptoms. David Chiu, of the California state assembly, said the liner could be quarantined for two weeks.

Neil and Victoria Hanlon, from Bridgwater, Somerset, said it was tough living in isolation aboard. Mr Hanlon added: ‘We passed a few people on the ship, probably about a week or so ago that did look seriously ill, very ill, they had masks and stuff on.

‘We were in the lift with them, which probably wasn’t a good thing, but they were going down to level four which is where the medical centre was. We asked them if they were ok, their breathing was horrendous, they said they had bronchitis.’

Amid criticism about his handling of the US outbreak, Donald Trump yesterday said he was personally co-ordinating the operation as he tried to allay fears about the spread of the virus. The US President said: ‘Calm, you have to be calm. It’ll go away. In terms of cases it’s very, very few.’

Concerns about the cruise erupted when a 71-year-old man who had travelled from San Francisco to Mexico last month died after disembarking the ship.

California’s governor Gavin Newsom will not let the vessel dock until tests are complete. Yesterday authorities carried out testing on 45 passengers and crew who had reported flu-like symptoms.

Relatives of the holidaymakers called for their urgent removal. One told the Mail she fears her 90-year-old father, who was due to disembark today, is at risk and does not have enough medication with him.

The Grand Princess is owned by the company behind the Diamond Princess, which was quarantined for two weeks in Japan last month amid a wave of criticism.

Last night it emerged the US could urge travellers to cancel cruise holidays, with one official calling the boats ‘huge incubators’.