Thousands of Passengers and Crew Members on a Cruise Ship in Japan Are Being Tested for Coronavirus

Diamond Princess cruise ship (L) with over 3,000 people as it sits anchored in quarantine off the port of Yokohama on February 4, 2020, a day after it arrived with passengers feeling ill. – Japan has quarantined the cruise ship carrying 3,711 people and was testing those onboard for the new coronavirus on February 4 after a passenger who departed in Hong Kong tested positive for the virus.
BEHROUZ | Photo: MEHRI/Getty Images

Update (February 5, 2020): At least 10 passengers, who are all over 50 years old, tested positive for the coronavirus, the BBC reported. The individuals were taken to a nearby hospital on the mainland and are being kept in isolation. They include two Australians, three Japanese, three Hong Kong citizens, one American, and one Filipino, according to NBC News.

Thousands of people on board a cruise ship in Japan are being quarantined and screened for the coronavirus, after a recent passenger from Hong Kong was diagnosed with the contagious virus, Reuters reported. The 80-year-old man, who tested positive for the virus, had flown to Japan and boarded the ship on Jan. 20 before disembarking in Hong Kong on Jan. 25, according to the wire service.

The precautions come as the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases has risen to more than 20,000, with 429 deaths recorded as of Tuesday morning, according to CNBC.

The Diamond Princess ship, run by Carnival Japan Inc., was held in the Japanese port of Yokohama on Tuesday, Reuters reported. About 3,700 passengers and crew members (2,666 guests and 1,045 employees) had to be screened for the virus, which originated earlier this year in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

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