10 More infected with coronavirus on cruise ship in Japan

February 6, 2020

Tokyo/Yokohama--Japan's health ministry said Thursday it has newly confirmed that 10 more people aboard a cruise ship in the country are infected with the new coronavirus originating in China.

The number of virus carriers confirmed in the group infection on the Diamond Princess cruise ship has reached 20, and that of confirmed infection cases across Japan has risen to 45. The 10 people will be carried to a medical institution in Kanagawa Prefecture, just south of Tokyo.

The ministry had collected samples from 273 people, including those with fever and other symptoms, on the ship for screening. The 20 people who were found to have been infected with the virus are among 102 whose testing results became available by Thursday.

The ministry requested passengers and crew members to stay on the ship until Feb. 19 now that the group infection has been confirmed following the discovery of the infection of a Hong Kong man who recently disembarked from the ship.

On Thursday morning, the cruise ship docked at Daikoku Pier of the port of Yokohama in Kanagawa to procure food and other supplies for some 3,700 passengers and crew members.

Concerned about mental and physical disorders that passengers and others may develop during the prolonged stay on the ship, the city government of Yokohama is considering dispatching public health personnel if requested by the operator of the ship. Jiji Press