Diamond Princess passenger "tested positive for Wuhan coronavirus"

[matadams4u]

There are now reports that ten passengers have tested positive.  There will be a news conference in Tokyo at 830 pm.

[koolforkatz]

Everybody to be quarantined for 14 days onboard ship.

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/04/princess-cruises-quarantines-3700-after-10-passengers-test-positive-for-virus.html?__source=Facebook

 

 

[dog]

Thanks for posting that update. Feb 4 & 12th cruises on Diamond are cancelled.

[Expat Cruise]

Here is the notice from Princess Cruises

 

Updated February 4, 2020 at 4:30 PM PT

Confirmed cases of Coronavirus on Diamond Princess

Princess Cruises can confirm that the first phase of health screening of all guests and crew onboard Diamond Princess, by the Japanese Ministry of Health, has been completed. We were notified that amongst the samples that have completed testing, 10 people have tested positive for Coronavirus.

These 10 persons, who have been notified, will be taken ashore by Japanese Coast Guard watercraft and transported to local hospitals for care by shoreside Japanese medical professionals. It has been confirmed that the ship will remain under quarantine in Yokohama. The length of the quarantine will be at least 14 days as required by the Ministry of Health.

The ship plans to go out to sea to perform normal marine operations including, but not limited to, the production of fresh water and ballast operations before proceeding alongside in Yokohama where food, provisions, and other supplies will be brought onboard.

Guests will continue to be provided complimentary internet and telephone to use in order to stay in contact with their family and loved ones, and the ship’s crew is working to keep all guests comfortable.

Princess Cruises will continue to fully cooperate with and follow the instructions of global medical authorities and the Japanese government.

We will also be cancelling the next two Diamond Princess cruises departing Yokohama (Feb 4 and Feb 12) and will begin notifying guests today.

Princess Cruises confirms there are 2,666 guests and 1,045 crew currently onboard covering a range of nationalities. Approximately half the guests onboard are from Japan.

https://www.princess.com/news/notices_and_advisories/notices/diamond-princess-update.html

 

[AncientWanderer]

Delete...already posted above.

 

Edited February 5, 2020 by AncientWanderer

[chipmaster]

The results were for 10 of 273 tested that had symptoms, so not 10 out of a couple thousand, but really 5% of those with symptoms had the virus, no conclusion.  It'll be interesting to see out of the other couple thousand how many will show symptoms and then test positive.

 

Almost the ideal experiment to evaluate transmission Ro, incubation and mortality.

[matadams4u]

True...can I see a raise of hands of volunteers for that experiment?

[chipmaster]

5 minutes ago, matadams4u said:

True...can I see a raise of hands of volunteers for that experiment?

 

All those who happened to take a cruise,.

 

Hey I hear they got free wifi, likely a certificate for a free cruise next time on Princess too and probably a refund, dang a good deal to further medical science, LOL

Edited February 5, 2020 by chipmaster

[Germancruiser]

Confined in their cabins- inside cabins for some- what a nightmare- confined in an inside cabin for two weeks. Uhh- i wonder how that works out.

[arizonaperson]

25 minutes ago, Germancruiser said:

Confined in their cabins- inside cabins for some- what a nightmare- confined in an inside cabin for two weeks. Uhh- i wonder how that works out.

Where did you see or read  that the passengers are confined to their cabins? Maybe I missed something. I think they’re just confined to the ship. They may have been confined to their cabins for a short time so the medical personnel could check everyone. 

[Germancruiser]

I read it here on the Princess board - the other thread about the CV. They confirmed that the passengers have to stay in their cabins.

[Markanddonna]

I also heard that someone reported the passengers were confined to their cabin, but agree that might be only until passengers receive a medical screening. With ten passengers with coronavirus, I bet a med check will be done daily.

What a nightmare!

[brisalta]

Updated statement from Princess 6:00 PM PT which includes cancellation notices.

 

https://www.princess.com/news/notices_and_advisories/notices/diamond-princess-update.html

Updated February 4, 2020 at 6:00 PM PT

Confirmed Cases of Coronavirus on Diamond Princess

Princess Cruises can confirm that the first phase of health screening of all guests and crew onboard Diamond Princess, by the Japanese Ministry of Health, has been completed. We were notified that amongst the samples that have completed testing, 10 people have tested positive for Coronavirus. This includes two Australian guests, three Japanese guests, three guests from Hong Kong, and one guest from the U.S. in addition to one Filipino crewmember.

These 10 persons, who have been notified, will be taken ashore by Japanese Coast Guard watercraft and transported to local hospitals for care by shoreside Japanese medical professionals. It has been confirmed that the ship will remain under quarantine in Yokohama. The length of the quarantine will be at least 14 days as required by the Ministry of Health.

The ship plans to go out to sea to perform normal marine operations including, but not limited to, the production of fresh water and ballast operations before proceeding alongside in Yokohama where food, provisions, and other supplies will be brought onboard.

Guests will continue to be provided complimentary internet and telephone to use in order to stay in contact with their family and loved ones, and the ship’s crew is working to keep all guests comfortable.

Princess Cruises will continue to fully cooperate with and follow the instructions of global medical authorities and the Japanese government.

We will also be cancelling the next two Diamond Princess cruises departing Yokohama (Feb 4 and Feb 12) and will begin notifying guests today.

Princess Cruises confirms there are 2,666 guests and 1,045 crew currently onboard covering a range of nationalities. Approximately half the guests onboard are from Japan.

---

Cancellation of Diamond Princess – February 4 Cruise (Yokohama)

Princess Cruises thanks the Japan Ministry of Health for their thorough review of the health status of guests and crew aboard Diamond Princess. The cruise line has decided to cancel the next voyage of Diamond Princess to help facilitate the health screening and records review process.

Diamond Princess was due to depart Yokohama (February 4, 2020) for an eight day round trip cruise. However, the decision was made to cancel the cruise because of the time needed for the authorities to complete their comprehensive review.

All guests will receive a full refund. Each guest will also receive a one hundred percent future cruise credit.

While this decision will be disappointing for our guests, we feel they will understand the commitment to continue to work closely with the health authorities because we share a common goal of looking after the safety and well-being of our guests, crew and the places we visit.

Princess Cruises confirmed there are 2,666 guests currently onboard covering a range of nationalities. About half the guests are from Japan.

We will provide a further update once we have more information. 

---

Yokohama, Japan (Feb 4, 2020 GMT+9)

Princess Cruises has confirmed the turnaround of Diamond Princess has been delayed for approximately 24 hours to allow Japan public health authorities the opportunity to review the health status of all guests and crew on board.

On the previous voyage, a guest from Hong Kong, embarked in Yokohama on January 20, sailed one segment of the itinerary, and disembarked in Hong Kong on January 25. He visited a local Hong Kong hospital, six days after leaving the ship, where he later tested positive for coronavirus on February 1. While on the ship he did not visit the ship’s medical centre to report any symptoms or illness. The hospital reports that he is in stable condition and the family members traveling with him remain symptom-free.

The safety, security and well-being of all guests and crew is our absolute priority. The review of the arriving guests and crew, by Japanese health authorities, is standard practice after a guest tested positive for coronavirus and we are working closely with the local authorities to provide detailed records to facilitate their review.

Diamond Princess arrived in Yokohama early from a 14-day round trip itinerary, which departed from Yokohama (Tokyo) on January 20 and was scheduled to return on February 4. There are 2,666 guests and 1,045 crew on board. 

We will provide a further update once we have more information.

 

[Germancruiser]

This was posted in the other thread:

 

Yes. It was announced that passengers are confined to their cabins. I wouldn't like it either if I was in that position, but I would accept that it was for the better good - to reduce the possibility of spread of the virus.

 

The situation would be a nightmare for the crew on the ship. They have to prepare meals and deliver them to the cabins, then deal with passengers who might try to break out of their imposed quarantine.

[dchip]

9 minutes ago, Germancruiser said:

This was posted in the other thread:

 

Yes. It was announced that passengers are confined to their cabins. I wouldn't like it either if I was in that position, but I would accept that it was for the better good - to reduce the possibility of spread of the virus.

 

The situation would be a nightmare for the crew on the ship. They have to prepare meals and deliver them to the cabins, then deal with passengers who might try to break out of their imposed quarantine.

Oh my gosh! What an absolute nightmare for everyone concerned. That poor crew. 😖 
 

Denise

[matadams4u]

Something isn’t right - there are supposedly over 200 Aussies on board and there has been no mention of how the drink packages are being handled.

[hawkeyetlse]

1 hour ago, Germancruiser said:

The situation would be a nightmare for the crew on the ship. They have to prepare meals and deliver them to the cabins, then deal with passengers who might try to break out of their imposed quarantine.

 

And at some point they will need to collect the dirty (potentially infected) dishes and cutlery in everyone's cabins. 😨

[Harry Peterson]

1 hour ago, arizonaperson said:

Where did you see or read  that the passengers are confined to their cabins? Maybe I missed something. I think they’re just confined to the ship. They may have been confined to their cabins for a short time so the medical personnel could check everyone. 

From the BBC:

 

"We are now officially in quarantine. We are to remain on board the ship and we are confined to our cabins," a British passenger identified as Mr Abel told the Press Association news agency.

 

Another passenger said her mother, who is in her 80s, was running out of medicine.

 

"We are in trouble because [her] medicine is running out. Many of the passengers are old and some are as troubled as we are," she told NHK.

[gvre]

40 minutes ago, matadams4u said:

Something isn’t right - there are supposedly over 200 Aussies on board and there has been no mention of how the drink packages are being handled.

Wow important question.  14 days in a cabin is enouth to make any one drink'

 

 

[brisalta]

1 hour ago, matadams4u said:

Something isn’t right - there are supposedly over 200 Aussies on board and there has been no mention of how the drink packages are being handled.

 

They will just order fruit and brew their own 😀

[dog]

David Abel link on other thread see his live videos. Just friend him on fb. They are now getting food. 

[SakeDad]

4 hours ago, chipmaster said:

The results were for 10 of 273 tested that had symptoms, so not 10 out of a couple thousand, but really 5% of those with symptoms had the virus, no conclusion.  It'll be interesting to see out of the other couple thousand how many will show symptoms and then test positive.

 

Almost the ideal experiment to evaluate transmission Ro, incubation and mortality.

So there is an IMPORTANT NOTE here....of the 273 tested that had symptoms only 31 (THIRTY ONE!!!) have been returned and of those 31 10 have been positive! So it's NOT 10 of 273, it's 10 of 31 with all the rest to still have results come back.....BIG DIFFERENCE!

[SakeDad]

On 2/2/2020 at 11:52 AM, Cruise Raider said:

 

Elite members can purchase the lower cost insurance through Princess and be upgraded to the Platinum insurance.  While the insurance itself does not cover a 'cancel for any reason' clause, it will cover you for medical and similar documented reasons up to 100% of your non-refundable costs.  If you cancel for a non-covered reason, such as changing your mind, that claim will go back to Princess and you will be given a 100% credit that can be used within the next year.   

Now, I don't know this for certain but, one of the travel agents on a Princess FB page stated that the lower cost standard insurance that is purchased through Princess, you can still receive a 75% future cruise credit (instead of the 100%). It's important to know what is in these policies as I've been reading that many of these insurance policies don't necessarily provide coverage for cancellations out of fear of a deadly outbreak.   The only ones that would are those that contain a cancel for any reason clause.  

I usually just get the standard Princess insurance and am upgraded automatically to the Platinum coverage.  Of course, the premium for the coverage is never refundable.  

However some cruisers are being told epidemics are NOT covered reasons to cancel so if you don't have "for any reason" you may be in for a very rude awakening.

[OzKiwiJJ]

1 hour ago, SakeDad said:

So there is an IMPORTANT NOTE here....of the 273 tested that had symptoms only 31 (THIRTY ONE!!!) have been returned and of those 31 10 have been positive! So it's NOT 10 of 273, it's 10 of 31 with all the rest to still have results come back.....BIG DIFFERENCE!

But that result could be skewed if tests on some people were proritised over the remainder because they were showing more obvious symptoms.

[SakesDad]

3 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

But that result could be skewed if tests on some people were proritised over the remainder because they were showing more obvious symptoms.

Very true as they don't say why only 31 results have come back so far.