The Hits Just Keep Coming For Cruise Ship Crew Members

After months of terrible news for cruise ship passengers, the majority of them have now left the ships to either seek medical treatment or go home. But the same cannot be said for the ships’ crew members. Hundreds of cruise workers are currently stuck aboard the vessels, unable to go home or disembark at the closest port of call. And despite the lessened load of people aboard the ships, it appears that coronavirus continues to spread.

MSN.com reports that aboard the Costa Atlantica cruise ship arrived at Nagasaki, Japan in January with several hundred crew members aboard. Around the same time, the Princess cruise ship Diamond Princess arrived at Japan, and authorities quarantined it off the country’s coast. But while the Diamond Princess since has been evacuated, the Costa Atlantica remains. Now, the ship’s crew members seem to be in the midst of an outbreak.

After testing a total of 61 people aboard the ship this week, at least 34 people have tested positive. Many infections have been confirmed on the ship…We hope that they will be able to go home in full health as soon as possible. We are asking the national government for help,” said Nagasaki governor Hodo Nakamura according to the report. 

Authorities are unsure of the exact number of people who remain aboard the ship but believe that there are approximately 623 people still on the vessel. Authorities are also unsure of how many people aboard the ship may have contracted coronavirus. Japanese authorities are not currently conducting the tests, reports MSN.com. Instead, they are passing the tests to medical personnel aboard the ship, and they are conducting the tests.