Coronavirus case docks passengers
Cambodian officials testing on cruise ship
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — An 83-year-old American woman who left a cruise ship in Cambodia and flew to Malaysia was found to be carrying the new deadly coronavirus that began in China. The cruise ship had been turned away elsewhere in Asia for fear of spreading the virus.
The news has frozen further movement of the passengers and crew of the MS Westerdam. Some are now in hotels in Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh, while others are still aboard the ship.
The American woman was among several hundred passengers who were flown out of Cambodia on Friday and Saturday. According to authorities in Malaysia, 143 continued their flights home from that country, while the woman and her 84-yearold husband, who was diagnosed with pneumonia, remained behind for treatment.
The ship’s operator, Holland America Line, said in a statement Monday that Cambodian health officials were on board the ship testing the 255 guests and 747 crew who were awaiting clearance, and that guests currently staying at a Phnom Penh hotel had all been tested.
“At this time, no other guests or crew on board or at the hotel have reported any symptoms of the illness. Guests who have already returned home will be contacted by their local health department and provided further information,” it said.
Several Westerdam passengers have already returned home and spoken to the media, including Henderson couple Paulette and Joseph Schaeffer.
Two Canadians who returned via Vancouver International Airport were asked to put on protective face masks on arrival but were not otherwise isolated, Canada’s CBC News reported.
“We were asked a few questions and filled out an immigration form, and they very nicely helped us bypass the usual lineups and let us out the door,” said Joseph Hansen, who took the cruise with his wife. “We’re feeling fine.”
According to Professor Benjamin Cowling from the School of Public Health at Hong Kong University, it’s a good idea to let passengers leave and monitor them after disembarkation.
“We have seen the consequences of holding passengers on a cruise ship with the Diamond Princess outbreak,” he said, referring to another cruise ship that is quarantined in Yokohama, Japan, with hundreds of cases among the passengers.