Coronavirus: Don’t ‘dump’ sick cruise ship passengers in Florida, says governor Ron DeSantis
- Zaandam, which is carrying 1,800 passengers, still looking for place to dock after four people died on board and dozens reported flu-like symptoms
- Local mayor Dean Trantalis says it’s ‘completely unacceptable’ to let people disembark in his city because no assurances have been given about what happens next
Florida’s governor said on Monday that he does not want a cruise ship with passengers suspected to be suffering from coronavirus to dock in his southern US state.
The Holland America Line vessel, the Zaandam, passed through the Panama Canal overnight as the company searched for a port that will allow passengers to disembark.
“We view this as a big, big problem and we do not want to see people dumped in southern Florida right now,” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis told Fox News.
“We cannot afford to have people who are not even Floridians dumped into South Florida,” he said. “I’m in contact with the White House on this.”
The Zaandam, which is carrying 1,800 passengers, went through the Panama Canal from the Pacific side overnight and into the Caribbean after canal authorities reversed a decision to block its passage.