Coronavirus: cruise ship held off California coast has 21 new cases
- Ship with around 3,500 on board has not been permitted to dock following discovery of new cases
- In remarks meant to calm fears, President Donald Trump praised China for an “immediate” response, contradicting other US government officials
Cases of the novel coronavirus on a cruise ship floating off the Californian coast have reached 21, US officials announced on Friday, as US President Donald Trump sought to calm fears about the contagion’s spread.
The Covid-19 disease was detected in nineteen crew members and two passengers, US Vice-President Mike Pence, who is coordinating the administration’s response to the outbreak, said at a press briefing.
Some 3,500 people are currently aboard the ship, which has not been permitted to dock following the discovery of the contagion on board. The newly confirmed cases came after test kits were delivered to the vessel, called the Grand Princess, via helicopter on Thursday.
Pence said the higher number of cases among crew members was likely due to the fact that the virus had manifested itself on the ship during two different trips.
The ship would be brought into a “non-commercial port” over the weekend, said Pence. “All passengers and crew will be tested for the contagion, and those that need to be quarantined will be quarantined, those that require additional medical attention will receive it.”
The rise in cases onboard came as total infections worldwide broke 100,000. To date, the disease has killed over 3,400 people, the majority in China.
One of the 11 fatalities in the US has been traced back to the ship, after an elderly man who had recently travelled on the Grand Princess died this week from Covid-19.