More than 200 Canadians onboard cruise ships are being held off the coast of California for testing coronavirus, Global Affairs Canada confirmed Thursday.
Ships were named the Grand Princess, had returned from Hawaii to San Francisco, California. With about 3,500 passengers onboard.
Global Affairs confirmed Thursday that there were 235 Canadians on the Grand Princess.
“Passengers will now be tested for the virus on the ship,” Global Affairs wrote in a statement to Brampton News. “At the moment, there are no confirmed cases. We are in contact with the cruise lines and local authorities, and we are monitoring the situation closely. “
Concerns about the spread of COVID-19 in the vessel was lifted after a man 71 years old Sacramento, Calif., Who has been taking a cruise on the Grand Princess between February 11 and 21, died of the virus on Wednesday.
Governor of California Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency on Wednesday after the man’s death.
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Princess Cruises, owner of the Grand Princess, said 267 Canadians have been aboard the Grand Princess during a trip in mid-February.
Peel Public Health confirmed on Thursday that the Mississauga, Ontario. Men’s 60s have been infected COVID-19 after taking a cruise, while a woman’s 50s from Calgary who also took a cruise considered to have the virus.
Newsom said the passenger will be held onboard the ship until everyone on board can be tested for the virus.
Princess Cruises said no one currently onboard has been tested positive for the virus, although some passengers have flu-like symptoms. The cruise line hopes to release the results of testing of the passengers on Friday.
This is the second cruise ship with more than 200 passengers Canada which will be held from docking because of fears of a virus outbreak on board.
In early February, Diamond Princess, also owned by Princess Cruises, was held from docking in Yokohama, Japan. Of the 3,711 passengers, there were 256 Canadians.
As the ship remained idle and in quarantine, the virus managed to spread throughout the ship, eventually infecting 705 onboard and at least 47 Canadians.
Dr. Sumon Chakrabarti, an infectious disease specialist at Trillium Health Partners in Mississauga, Ont., Told the Brampton-News Channel that the yacht can easily multiply to the type of virus.
“The yacht is a bit of a perfect area for the virus to spread, you have a lot of people in a contained area and it is vital that we do not make the same mistakes that occurred with the Diamond Princess,” he said.
Chakrabarti added that he believed the passengers and crew on the Grand Princess should be allowed to get off the ship for testing on the ground.
“It’s good that the testing is done, but I think people should be taken off the cruise ship and put in proper insulation as needed, so we’ll see what happens in a few days,” he said.
Global Affairs says Canada require emergency assistance can contact the Consulate General of Canada in San Francisco at 844-880-6519 or Watch and Emergency Response Center in Ottawa at 613-996-8885 or 800-387-3124.
Those seeking assistance can also send an email to sos@international.gc.ca.
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