Coronavirus: 11 more Americans test positive for virus after evacuating Japan cruise ship

More than 300 evacuees from quarantined cruise liner return to US as official brace for more infections

Alex Woodward
New York
Friday 21 February 2020 09:17 GMT
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At least 11 Americans who were evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship into the US under quarantine have tested positive for coronavirus.

The evacuees were transported from the ship to American air force bases this week, where they remained under quarantine. Five other evacuees had symptoms of the virus.

According to the University of Nebraska Medical Center, 11 of the 13 people who remained at the facility for monitoring had tested positive for the virus. They show only minor symptoms, a statement from the center says.

The patients were evacuated from the Diamond Princess on 17 February.

Fifty-seven other people under quarantine at the Nebraska National Gaurd’s Camp Ashland facility were released after their two-week isolation and monitoring. University officials said that only one person appeared to have any symptoms, but two rounds of testing showed a negative diagnosis for the virus.

All of those patients at Camp Ashland had recently visited Wuhan, China, the epicentre of the outbreak that has strickenend thousands and has killed more than 2,000 people.

After several weeks under quarantine on the cruise liner in Yokohama, Japan, more than 300 Americans were evacuated by US officials and placed in US quarantine for two weeks in military bases in California and Texas this week.

US infections of the flu-like respiratory illness have now reached more two dozen patients.

On Wednesday, officials with the Japanese Ministry of Health confirmed the on-board deaths of an 87-year-old man and an 84-year-old woman. Both had other health issues, officials said.

Roughly 600 people aboard the ship tested positive for the virus, accounting for nearly 20 per cent of the ship’s 3,700 passengers and crew members.

Japanese health officials cleared another 600 passengers on Wednesday, bringing an end to a harrowing quarantine on the ship after an outbreak was reported.

Hours before the US passengers’ scheduled departure, officials confirmed 79 additional cases onboard.

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