A Norwegian cruise ship with more than 3,200 people on board outside New Orleans, has reported an outbreak of COVID-19.
Officials over the weekend said, ten people aboard the Norwegian Cruise Line ship approaching New Orleans have tested positive for COVID-19.
In a news release by Louisiana Department of Health, it said the Cruise ship had departed New Orleans on November 28 and is due to return this weeken, the Louisiana Department of Health said in a news release. Over the past week, the ship made stops in Belize, Honduras and Mexico.
The release further stated that The Norwegian Breakaway has been adhering to appropriate quarantine and isolation protocols as new cases and exposures have been identified aboard this vessel.
According to officials, as part of safety measures, eack person on board, prior to disembarking in New Orleans, will be tested for the coronavirus. Anyone who tests positive will either go directly home or self-isolate in accommodations provided by the cruise line.
However, no information about the conditions of those who have contracted the virus was released by the officials.
In March 2020, at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the United States’ Center for Disease Control and Prevention issued a no-sail order.
This came after several Cruise ships reported outbreaks of the virus last year as some ships were rejected at ports and passengers were forced into quarantine. Some passengers died of COVID-19 at sea while others fell so ill they had to be carried out of the vessels on stretchers.
Cruise ships began sailing again from U.S ports last June with new health and safety requirements.
