Coronavirus-Hit Grand Princess Departs from Oakland, All Guests Disembarked (18 MAR 2020)

Grand Princess cruise ship has left the Port of Oakland after all of its guests and half of the crew members disembarked the vessel.

The coronavirus-hit cruise ship, which had 3,533 people on board, including 2,422 guests and 1,111 teammates, is now anchored in San Francisco Bay, the ship’s operator Princess Cruises, said.

The company added that once the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) began the guest disembark process, Princess Cruises activated its Care Team operations to provide support services and family assistance as guests transitioned to shoreside care and quarantine facilities.

The disembarkation was ordered after 21 people on board the ship tested positive for COVID-19.

The two guests, as well as their travel companions, have been transferred to local hospitals. However, based on the information from Princess Cruises, the 19 crew members who tested positive for COVID-19 have been deemed asymptomatic and were not disembarked from the ship. They were put in isolation in their individual cabins.

To remind, due to the ongoing situation caused by the virus outbreak, Princess Cruises decided to suspend global operations of its 18 cruise ships for two months.

The suspension of operations would be impacting voyages departing from March 12 to May 10.

The announcement was followed by the decision from CLIA, the world’s largest cruise industry trade association, to suspend cruise ship operations from and to U.S. ports of call for 30 days as public health officials and the U.S. Government continue to address the global pandemic.

The Port of Oakland remains operational despite an Alameda County shelter-in-place order, intended to slow the spread of coronavirus. Under the restrictions, only essential businesses are permitted to remain open.

Source: http://worldmaritimenews.com