Coronavirus: Nearly 60 new cases found on Italian Cruise Ship in Japan

Nearly 60 new cases of coronavirus infections have been confirmed on the Costa Atlantica cruise ship held in quarantine at Nagasaki port in Japan.

THE outbreak on the Italian-operated Costa Atlantica surfaced on Tuesday when officials from Nagasaki and Mitsubishi Heavy Industry, which is in charge of repairs and maintenance on the ship, announced that a crew member developed a cough and fever. By Thursday, 47 crew have tested positive for the virus, a Nagasaki prefectural official Hironori Hashiguchi said.

The outbreak on the ship was originally reported on Tuesday, since then new cases have started to appear.

The ship has 623 crew, including a Japanese translator, and no passengers. It came to Nagasaki after changing its repair plan in China due to the pandemic. Officials did not disclose the nationalities of the crew.

With the testing of all crew members now complete, the new number brings the total infections on board the Costa Atlantica to around 150, roughly one-quarter of the vessel’s 623 crew members.

The infection cluster on board the vessel docked in Nagasaki comes as hospitals are running out of beds in some parts of Japan, where the national tally of virus cases has risen above 12,800 with 345 deaths. Of those infected onboard the Costa Atlantica, only one crew member had been admitted to hospital while others remained on board having shown slight or no symptoms.

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Written by

Tony Winterburn

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