Coronavirus: Two Swiss nationals face quarantine at sea
Cruise ship Diamond Princess is anchored off the shore of Yokohama, south of Tokyo, on Wednesday
Kyodo News
Two Swiss nationals are trapped in their cabins on a cruise ship in Japan after ten cases of coronavirus were discovered on board. The Swiss embassy in Tokyo is in contact with the Japanese authorities.
The Swiss, whose presence was confirmed by the foreign ministry, were travelling on a cruise ship carrying around 3,700 people of dozens of nationalities.
On Tuesday, Japanese authorities detected possible cases of contamination on the ship, the Diamond Princess. The vessel had arrived on Monday evening near the port of Yokohama, south-west of Tokyo. In Hong Kong, a case of coronavirus was detected in an 80-year-old man who had previously been on board.
By Friday, there were 41 extra cases: including 21 Japanese, 8 Americans, 5 Australians, 5 Canadians, 1 Argentinian and 1 British. The total now stands at 61 associated with the ship. The people who tested positive are to be taken to local hospitals
Tests were carried out on three groups of people on board the Diamond Princess: those with suspicious symptoms, those who had disembarked during the stopover in Hong Kong, and those who had been in contact with the infected passenger.
The rest of the passengers and crew members are required to remain on board for about 14 days, the minister added, noting that doctors believe the incubation period for the coronavirus is two weeks.
The overall death toll from an outbreak of the coronavirus has risen to nearly 500.
Life on board
Some passengers are tweeting life on board. They are being treated well, but have some concerns such as about medicine. They are mainly keeping calm. This is a tweet from one of them.
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