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It’s like a piece of deja vu, as cruise ships hit the seas, passengers are bringing COVID with them.
The latest, and perhaps the most serious. once again involves Princess Cruise lines (who can forget the 2020 ordeal of the Diamond Princess, detailed in “Hell of a Cruise”. Their ship, “Coral Princess” is currently sailing the seas around Australia, and has recently been designated a Tier 3, “high impact vessel” by the New South Wales health authorities, which has developed a tiered rating system.
What the designation indicates is that the government has judged the vessel unable to perform critical functions due to the size of the outbreak of COVID aboard the ship, is greater than 10 percent. Multiple media sources has pegged the number of infected passenger and crew at 290 and growing.
A WA Health spokesperson said in a statement, “In accordance with the protocols, while in WA waters cruise operators should report Covid-19 cases to WA Health 12 to 24 hours prior to arrival in a WA port. Regarding the Coral Princess, WA Health has been advised of passengers and crew testing positive to Covid-19, and this evolving situation is being managed by the vessel operator according to its Covid-19 plan. Under the protocols, those on-board vessels who have Covid should isolate for five days.”
Bottom line, if you are getting on a cruise ship this holiday season, factor in the possibility (some may say probability) of becoming infected with COVID. Please also make sure you have the right insurance policy in the event you find yourself in forced isolation due to COVID in a far-away land.
