Bad weather prevented cruise ship from docking

A cruise ship called Crystal Symphony had intended to dock on Saipan last Feb. 3 but wasn’t able to do so, not because of any passenger who may have been suspected of being infected with the novel coronavirus but because of bad weather conditions, according to Pacific Development Inc. managing director Gordon I. Marciano.

At the time when Crustal Symphony was making plans to dock on Saipan, rough seas and low visibility prevented it from doing so, prompting the cancellation of many tours that had been lined up for the ship’s passengers.

“The water was just rough, and the wind was so strong that the [Crystal Symphony] weren’t able to come into our channel” Mariano said.

This would have been the ships’ inaugural port call on Saipan, he added. Tours and shuttles were also provided but were cancelled until further notice.

Guam recently denied a cruise vessel from docking in the U.S. territory because of fears that some of its passengers may be infected with the 2019 novel coronavirus.  

The vessel, MS Westerdam, a British-American private cruise vessel with 1,455 guests and 802 crew members, docked in Hong Kong on Feb. 1, 2020, and boarded approximately 800 passengers. The vessel sought entry at two other ports but was denied given the potential risk of infection and the need for a large quarantine. 

“While we feel for every soul on board the MS Westerdam, our obligation is to protect the people of Guam. Though Guam is prepared to deal with the potential implications of the coronavirus, few jurisdictions can screen, quarantine, or treat 1,400 patients at one time,” said Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero.

There are still no confirmed cases of the virus in Guam and on Saipan.

The Mariana Islands aren’t the only ones who have experienced this. Japan recently refused to let a luxury cruise ship dock due to suspected cases of the novel coronavirus contaminating the noncitizen passengers.

The operator of a cruise ship quarantined in Yokohama, near Tokyo, said an additional 66 cases were found aboard. That is in addition to 70 reported earlier.

Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said the Japanese government was considering testing all 3,711 passengers and crew on the Diamond Princess, which would require them to remain aboard until results are available. Health authorities are scrambling to deliver medicine requested by more than 600 passengers.

“We are doing the utmost to keep everyone in good health,” Kato said.

The death toll from the virus now stands at 908, has passed the 774 people believed to have died in the 2002-03 epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome, another viral outbreak that originated in China. The total of 40,171 cases on the mainland of the new virus vastly exceeds the 8,098 sickened by SARS. (With AP)