Coronavirus: Japan discovers another infection cluster aboard a foreign cruise ship

Prefectural authorities have warned that they lack ‘the medical system’ to test all 623 crew of the Costa Atlantica, or separate those who are infected

Concerns are also growing of the outbreak’s spread, after revelations that some crew had left the restricted area where the ship was being repaired

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An aerial view of the Costa Atlantica cruise ship anchored at a port in Nagasaki, southwestern Japan on Tuesday. Photo: Kyodo

Published: 6:30pm, 22 Apr 2020Updated: 6:30pm, 22 Apr 2020

More than 30 crew members on an Italian cruise ship docked for repairs in Japan’s Nagasaki prefecture have tested positive for the new coronavirus, raising concern about the impact on the local community.

The cluster of infections found on board the Costa Atlantica follows the case of the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Yokohama two months ago, where more than 700 were found to be infected, although this time only crew members were on board.

The Costa Cruises-operated ship was taken into a shipyard in Nagasaki city, in western Japan, in late February by a unit of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries after the virus pandemic had scuttled plans for scheduled repairs in China.

The vessel has 623 crew, and after detecting one had been infected tests were carried out on close contacts among fellow crew members.

Nagasaki Governor Hodo Nakamura speaks during a news conference at his office on Wednesday. Photo: Kyodo

Nagasaki prefectural authorities on Wednesday said they had confirmed a total of 34 infections on the ship and appealed for help from the central government to tackle the incident.