Currently on Coral Princess ....

[mevs904]

19 minutes ago, arabrab said:

 

Someone who was infected but without symptoms boarded. (About 25% or more of folks who are positive for the virus do not have symptoms.) That person, while not showing symptoms, infects someone else who does show symptoms.

Yes, I understand the fact that about 25% of people do not exhibit symptoms.  It was the timeline that I was trying to get my head around.  If an asymptomatic passenger boarded the ship over 15 days ago and then slowly infected others that would mean that there is really no safety in the 15 day quarantine protocol.

[azbirdmom]

27 minutes ago, arabrab said:

 

Someone who was infected but without symptoms boarded. (About 25% or more of folks who are positive for the virus do not have symptoms.) That person, while not showing symptoms, infects someone else who does show symptoms.

 

But no one has boarded the ship recently, and the passengers haven't been ashore or some time.  So this is puzzling to me as well.

[Jaxweb]

23 minutes ago, azbirdmom said:

 

But no one has boarded the ship recently, and the passengers haven't been ashore or some time.  So this is puzzling to me as well.

 

Cruise staff?

[arabrab]

14 minutes ago, azbirdmom said:

 

But no one has boarded the ship recently, and the passengers haven't been ashore or some time.  So this is puzzling to me as well.

 

Say someone is exposed and catches it March 1 or 2nd. (I think that was about the date passengers or crew last interacted in person with anyone on shore.)  With about a quarter of the people who are infected not having symptoms they may notice, it is reasonably possible that it was transmitted to someone else who didn't show symptoms or who didn't notice mild symptoms or who didn't report mild symptoms. Then someone gets infected who does manifest significant symptoms. 

 

Time in quarantine is a good but not perfect measure. There are no perfect measures. 

 

 

[mickrory]

Very sad to learn you have Covid19 on board. Hope you all manage to stay safe.

Are you sailing to Bermuda where Coral is registered or a port in Florida?

[JennAngel9]

I think the most important questions are (a) when is the latest likely date it was introduced on the ship and (b) when did Coral Princess ask people to stay in their cabins.  Then you would want to compare that duration against the timeline from Diamond Princess where 1 person got on sick until they confined to cabins and ended up with 700ish cases.

 

Weren't some people let off (and possibly back on?) in South America a week or so ago? Possibly someone became infected during that process.  It would be good news in that the virus had less time to spread on board.  I would also hope for significantly better outcomes for Coral as there was higher hygiene protocol and there will be lessons learned from Diamond and Grand.

[NorthwestCruiser]

I think we have learned that this hardy little bug has at least the theoretical ability to infect from surfaces (fomite transmission), so pretty much all bets are off.   They could have brought it aboard with the supplies.    What surprises me is that it lasts much better on hard surfaces such as plastic than cardboard, and we use a lot of plastic in our civilization.    Talk about the earth's revenge.

 

When I unbox stuff from Amazon (stores are pretty much closed around here) I do it in the driveway with a mask and gloves, and then wipe down the plastic with my remaining wipes.   (Soap would probably work as well or better.)

 

 

[sndral]

4 hours ago, chamima said:

...

Fresh air is good for everyone and the virus isn't magically waiting in the air. 

Actually, unfortunately, the latest research as well as the choir outbreak in Wa. suggests that although we don’t know for sure, there may be airborne transmission. https://www.livescience.com/coronavirus-can-spread-as-an-aerosol.html 

Hope for the best, but also assume the worst when it comes to protecting yourself given how much is not known about transmission IMO.

[LostFan#1]

For a little more information about possible incubation time....

 

We disembarked in Buenos Aires March 19 and flew to the US, but that early morning (4am), Argentine officials came on board to take temps. I never saw them but heard they wore hazmat suits. 

While many of us were able to make our flights, some passengers left the Coral to catch flights which were canceled. They were returned to the ship. So the buses and airport gave opportunity to catch the virus.  

[Aus Traveller]

5 minutes ago, Fear-the-turtle said:

For a little more information about possible incubation time....

 

We disembarked in Buenos Aires March 19 and flew to the US, but that early morning (4am), Argentine officials came on board to take temps. I never saw them but heard they wore hazmat suits. 

While many of us were able to make our flights, some passengers left the Coral to catch flights which were canceled. They were returned to the ship. So the buses and airport gave opportunity to catch the virus.  

Thanks for that information. It is really bad news that some people on the Coral have tested positive to the virus. However, I was super worried if no-one had been ashore since 1st March and now, more than a month later, they test positive. 

 

You advise that some were ashore in Buenos Aires on 19th March and that Argentinian health officials boarded the Coral Princess. Now, around 14 days later, some people test positive. This is very concerning, but not as scarey as the other scenario.

 

I hope the Coral is permitted to dock in Florida and that everyone can disembark to return home.

Edited April 2, 2020 by Aus Traveller

[LostFan#1]

Adding our prayers to everyone else’s. 

[chamima]

10 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

Thanks for that information. It is really bad news that some people on the Coral have tested positive to the virus. However, I was super worried if no-one had been ashore since 1st March and now, more than a month later, they test positive. 

 

You advise that some were ashore in Buenos Aires on 19th March and that Argentinian health officials boarded the Coral Princess. Now, around 14 days later, some people test positive. This is very concerning, but not as scarey as the other scenario.

 

I hope the Coral is permitted to dock in Florida and that everyone can disembark to return home.

 

Is it also possible that people were sick but not reporting it until it became severe?

On our last cruise my husband got the flu about 3 weeks into a 28 day cruise(confirmed by a test in the medical center).

The young man checking people into the medical center told him that about 800 passengers had the flu but on debarkation day we sat with a couple who said they had had the "flu" but hadn't gone to the medical center.

So how many people had they infected while the responsible people were self isolating in their cabins?

[the_thunderbird]

7 hours ago, mevs904 said:

Yes, I understand the fact that about 25% of people do not exhibit symptoms.  It was the timeline that I was trying to get my head around.  If an asymptomatic passenger boarded the ship over 15 days ago and then slowly infected others that would mean that there is really no safety in the 15 day quarantine protocol.

 

That's probably a poor take away from this. Covid-19 here is either from the most recent port calls (where by poor luck it appears Covid was ramping up right as the Coral was there), or, it being passed on from healthy appearing person to healthy appearing person and so on. I doubt anyone self isolated for 14 days before their embarkation on this ship whether as passenger, employee, or later temporary contacts at ports. 

 

The Coral Princess didn't begin isolating until .... 36 hours ago or so? 

 

Being on a cruise ship isn't isolating. Being on a cruise ship, in your cabin, is better than nothing but given the environment but the most ideal isolation. Taking broader conclusions about a 15 (or 14 in most places) day quarantine from this just doesn't make sense.

[Roberto256]

Zaandam and Rotterdam will be allowed to dock in Ft. Lauderdale this afternoon -- and send

passengers without symptoms directly to the airport.

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/cruise-ship-sick-passengers-sister-ship-will-be-allowed-dock-n1174796

 

Hopefully, Coral will be the same on Saturday.

 

In about 3-4 hours, we will know for sure.

[FoghornLeghorn]

11 hours ago, NorthwestCruiser said:

Soap does a pretty good job of deactivating the virus (better than alcohol) so go crazy, especially on any hard surfaces.   It is counter-intuitive but the stuff lives the longest on hard plastic and stainless.   Wash your hands *for 20 seconds* any time you pick up anything, and when you come in from the balcony.    If your hands aren't chapped by now, you are not doing it right.  I would not be out where somebody is coughing and I would avoid their side as much as possible if I went out at all.   Wash down surfaces if you must go out.

 

Your situation is not good at all, but with care you can do well.   Be careful of disembarkation, I would request that they let you leave before the sick person.   Also request gloves (they have a lot of them) in addition to the mask.   The gloves are probably more important, honestly.

 

How do you know they have a lot of gloves????

[voljeep]

7 minutes ago, Roberto256 said:

Zaandam and Rotterdam will be allowed to dock in Ft. Lauderdale this afternoon -- and send

passengers without symptoms directly to the airport.

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/cruise-ship-sick-passengers-sister-ship-will-be-allowed-dock-n1174796

 

Hopefully, Coral will be the same on Saturday.

 

In about 3-4 hours, we will know for sure.

1:00 and 1:30 per port schedule

[AF-1]

Bless all those onboard these two ships;  and bless those on the other ships who are currently looking for a place to dock

[bluesea321]

1 hour ago, Roberto256 said:

Zaandam and Rotterdam will be allowed to dock in Ft. Lauderdale this afternoon -- and send

passengers without symptoms directly to the airport.

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/cruise-ship-sick-passengers-sister-ship-will-be-allowed-dock-n1174796

 

Hopefully, Coral will be the same on Saturday.

 

In about 3-4 hours, we will know for sure.

 

It looks like "conditional approval" for the Zaandam and Rotterdam with "final" details to be worked out this morning according to Broward County Commissioner Udine.

 

https://miami.cbslocal.com/2020/04/02/fort-lauderdale-coronavirus-holland-americas-zaandam-rotterdam-off-coast-of-south-florida-still-no-docking-plan/

Edited April 2, 2020 by bluesea321

[hpeabody]

1 hour ago, FoghornLeghorn said:

 

How do you know they have a lot of gloves????

 

On Pacific Princess we were given NO GLOVES, but an N95 mask and a small hand sanitizer the night before our disembarkation in Fremantle, Australia.

[hpeabody]

I hope those not affected are able to stay well and you all have a smooth disembarkation at Port Everglades on Saturday.

 

A shout out to my friends on board, Susan, Chuck, Reba, Jerry and Leslie.  Be safe and be well.

[Roberto256]

2 hours ago, FoghornLeghorn said:

 

How do you know they have a lot of gloves????

A friend works in dining on coral, and is currently delivering meal to passengers who are confined to cabins.

 

She was given a 3M 8200 mask.

 

[Roberto256]

1 hour ago, bluesea321 said:

 

It looks like "conditional approval" for the Zaandam and Rotterdam with "final" details to be worked out this morning according to Broward County Commissioner Udine.

 

 

It looks like about a 3 hour delay, as the harbormaster schedule is now showing 1600 and 1630 for Zaandam and Rotterdam.

 

The schedule now shows Coral at 06:00 on 4/4.

[brisalta]

Status of Coral Princess updated April 2, 2020 9:18AM PT:  https://www.princess.com/news/notices_and_advisories/notices/coral-princess-updates.html

 

Coral Princess Update

In response to a reported small cluster of cases of respiratory illness and in an abundance of caution, Coral Princess proactively collected and sent 13 COVID-19 test samples to Barbados on March 31. We can confirm the results yielded 12 positive cases (7 guests and 5 crew).

Coral Princess is on her way to Ft. Lauderdale with an estimated arrival date of April 4. Princess Cruises continues to remain in contact with local officials regarding disembarkation details.

There are 1,898 people onboard including 1,020 guests and 878 crew members. Guests will continue to self-isolate in their staterooms, with all meals delivered by room service. Crew will remain in their staterooms when not working. Face masks are also being distributed to the remainder of the ship. We are conducting these proactive actions to protect the health of all onboard. These measures and precautions have been developed in coordination with the U.S. CDC.

Both internet and guest stateroom telephone service remain complimentary so that guests can stay in touch with loved ones.

 

Edited April 2, 2020 by brisalta

[brisalta]

1 hour ago, Roberto256 said:

A friend works in dining on coral, and is currently delivering meal to passengers who are confined to cabins.

 

She was given a 3M 8200 mask.

 

 

That mask has a

NIOSH Filter Approval Rating

N95

[USCcruisecrazy]

On ‎4‎/‎1‎/‎2020 at 2:37 PM, Pammy s said:

 Up until now I've been happy with Princess on the way they are handling the cruise in the condition of the quickly spreading of the coronavirus.  And I thought they were doing an amazing job thru this difficult time.  The crew is working so hard to make everyone so comfortable.  Yesterday, they moved all passengers from inside cabin or port hole window to balconies.  A nice gesture.  We had no one on the right side of our cabin.  But, had many other nice balcony neighbors.  Our balcony was peaceful, relaxing and quiet.  

 

Now they have moved an loud and rude person along side of us.  They cannot get on the phone unless they are using their speaker loudly and seem to be yelling as they talk into the phone.  Many of us nearby are unable to have private conversations or even talk to our friends in other balconies.  Plainly can not hear each other speak without their voice over powering our conversations.  But, I can deal with that.  I understand some people are not happy unless everyone can hear their conversations and need to be the center of everything.

 

Then their is the part I am upset about.  They moved sick passengers next door.  The loud balcony person is coughing up a storm and has a partner in the room that appears to be too sick to get out of bed.  The balconies, even though private are close.  The air particles can easily move one balcony to the next.  This virus appears to be able to spread so rapidly and fast, I am concerned.  Why is Princess moving sick passengers into areas where healthy passengers are located?  I called Guest Services, they acknowledged that sick and healthy passengers were moved. But, she pointed out that everyone is quarantined.  But, I said the balconies are so close together.  Why would Princess move sick passengers in the same area of passengers that are well and healthy?  Guest Services seemed unconcerned and stated their was nothing she was going to do.  I would of thought it would be common sense to keep sick passengers way from healthy passengers.  I feel bad for the sick passengers, but you also have issues of the air quality moving between cabins.  I even feel bad for the Stateroom Attendant, when these passengers were moved, they cause quite a stir and everyone around knew they needed help by the Stateroom Attendant, he is doing a terrific job.  But, it is not fair for him to be put in the place of moving someone is sick with all their luggage and personal belongings.  He is being put a risk as well.  

 

I am not one to complain normally.  And, yes their is a lot I do not know about the spread of coronavirus, and even the medical professionals are learning more and more every day.  And I hope I am wrong, on my concerns.  It just does not seem right or a proper procedure to move sick passengers into the general area of healthy passengers.  I am not saying they should not be moved to a balcony.  They need to be moved to a balcony away from healthy passengers.  Which I think would be idea.  I now understand better why so many Princess Ships has had so many issues, they are mixing healthy and sick passengers to close together.  

Perhaps a silly question, but don't the balconies have dividers?  If so, I can't imagine the virus makes it over or around the divider.  If not, recommend staying off the balcony while they are out!