Scramble to track Westerdam cruise ship passengers after coronavirus case confirmed
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Holland America Line said it is working with governments and health experts to track passengers who disembarked from its Westerdam cruise ship docked in Cambodia after an American woman tested positive for coronavirus in Malaysia.
The cruise line, which is owned by cruise giant Carnival Corp, said none of the other 1,454 passengers and 802 crew have reported any symptoms.
“Guests who have already returned home will be contacted by their local health department and be provided further information,” a statement from the company said.
Passengers had been cleared to travel by Cambodian authorities after health checks when the cruise ship docked on Thursday. It had spent two weeks at sea after being turned away by Japan, Taiwan, Guam, the Philippines and Thailand.
Two Maltese who were stranded on the cruise ship Westerdam when it was refused entry to several ports in Asia because of a suspected Coronavirus case, have now been brought back to Malta and show no symptoms of the virus.
The Maltese health authorities said they were screened upon their arrival in Malta and showed no signs or symptoms of respiratory disease.
They are now in quarantine as a precautionary measure.
But on Saturday, Malaysia said an American woman who arrived in Kuala Lumpur on Friday on a chartered flight had tested positive for the new coronavirus that has killed more than 1,700 people, the vast majority in China.
The woman’s husband tested negative for the coronavirus.
About 137 of the 145 passengers on the chartered flight had already left for other countries as of Sunday after showing no signs of illness, Malaysian authorities said.
Dozens more of the Westerdam passengers had flown through Thailand and onward to other countries, Thai officials said.
At least 236 passengers and 747 crew remain aboard the vessel off the Cambodian port city of Sihanoukville, Holland America said. Others were in hotels in Phnom Penh, the capital.
