Trapped Irish couple: 10 more have tested positive for virus on cruise ship

TEN more people have tested positive for the coronavirus and have been taken off the cruise liner in Japan where an Irish couple have spoken to the Irish Daily Mail about their ordeal while in quarantine.

The husband and wife wish to remain anonymous and yesterday the woman told the Mail how some passengers were released from their rooms, but very briefly and under strict conditions.

She also revealed that many are struggling to keep from going ‘stir crazy’ in their cabins.

In total, 20 people have been taken off the ship after contracting the virus, while results on about 170 more are pending.

About 3,700 people, including staff and passengers have been quarantined on board the

Diamond Princess in Yokohama, South Tokyo.

The Irish woman said they had begun letting passengers out of their cabins for brief periods, in order to stretch their legs. She said she got ‘so excited’ when the captain announced they would begin letting people out of their cabins for brief periods but, unfortunately, she and her husband did not get the chance yesterday.

‘[The captain] said that people from the inside cabins on deck five and eight can go outside until 7pm. He gave an hour and a half. I thought he would have tried to get a few floors done and given everyone about 15 minutes to stretch their legs,’ she said.

However, she has no problem with the people from the inside cabins getting an opportunity first because, ‘they have no light, they have no fresh air’, and at least the couple have a balcony.

However, people leaving their rooms are subject to strict conditions. They will be watched closely by quarantine officials, they must wear face masks, and small groups are not allowed to congregate. And if they talk to someone, they must be at least one metre apart.

If people don’t abide by these conditions, the opportunity may be revoked. The couple do not know yet when they might get the opportunity to leave their room to stretch their legs.

Passengers on the cruise liner have set up a Facebook group between themselves in order to keep everyone informed of what is going on. The Irish woman added that people there are already going ‘stir-crazy’.

Management of the cruise liner are trying to help ease the boredom for passengers by providing more movies on the TVs, quizzes and playing cards.

Passengers are being provided food, water, free internet and free phone calls to their room.

The initial ten people who tested positive were moved to hospitals where they are receiving treatment. The ten new cases include four Japanese, two Americans, two Canadians, one person from New Zealand and one from Taiwan. They were taken off the boat at around 2pm yesterday.

The cruise liner was put under quarantine after an 80-year-old Hong Kong man, who had been on board the ship for five days last month, later tested positive for the virus.

The ship arrived in Yokohama on Monday, ahead of schedule, following a 14-day round trip, in order to begin quarantine procedures.

As it stands, the quarantine of the ship will be in place for up to 14 days, which means that it could be February 18 before the couple are allowed to disembark.

According to the HSE, as of lunchtime yesterday there were still no confirmed cases of coronavirus in Ireland.

The health executive’s national crisis management team has met three times in the last week over the coronavirus.

The HSE have also secured an

‘They have no light or fresh air’

They must be a metre apart to talk

additional supply of personal protective equipment which will be dispatched to GP out-of-hours services, public health facilities and family doctors’ offices in case they are required.

As of yesterday, there have been over 560 deaths worldwide because of the coronavirus, with over 28,000 confirmed cases.

On Wednesday, the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney announced that the Government would allocate €500,000 to the World Health Organisation to help control the spread of coronavirus which is spreading rapidly.

In Britain, a third person has tested positive for coronavirus. England’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said they did not contract the virus in the UK. ronan.smyth@dailymail.ie