The number of people infected with COVID-19 on a quarantined ship off Japan has risen to 355, Japanese Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare Katsunobu Kato said yesterday, as the US, Canada, Hong Kong, South Korea and Italy prepared to repatriate their residents on board.
The figure is a jump of 70 cases from a government tally released on Saturday and came as Kato voiced worries that the rising infection count among Japan’s general population could mean the virus’s spread has entered a new phase.
“So far, we have conducted tests for 1,219 individuals. Of those, 355 people tested positive,” Kato told a roundtable discussion for public broadcaster NHK on conditions aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship.
Photo: Bloomberg
The vessel has been in quarantine since Feb. 5 at the port of Yokohama, and Japan’s efforts to control the viral infections on board have prompted international concern.
The ship was carrying more than 3,700 passengers and crew when it docked and was placed in isolation, after authorities found a passenger who got off in Hong Kong during the voyage had tested positive for the virus.
Japanese officials continued to find new infections among the passengers and crew and rushed them to local hospitals, while others have been told to stay inside their cabins during the 14-day quarantine period set to end on Wednesday.
The US yesterday was preparing to evacuate some of its citizen, but said those repatriated must go through another two-week quarantine period at home.
An on-board announcement late yesterday said Americans choosing to leave should get ready, tweets from passengers said.
“Disembarkation will begin at approximately 9pm,” the announcement said, asking the group to place their luggage outside their cabin doors.
Japan’s Self-Defense Forces were to use about 20 buses to transport the evacuees to Tokyo International Airport, TV Asahi reported.
“Based on the high number of COVID-19 cases identified on board the Diamond Princess, the Department of Health and Human Services made an assessment that passengers and crew members on board are at high risk of exposure,” the US embassy said in a letter to its citizens on the boat.
Seoul yesterday announced it would evacuate its citizens, “if they are tested negative from screenings by the Japanese authorities and are willing to return,” South Korean Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo told a briefing.
Hong Kong has also said it will offer its 330 residents of the territory on board the chance to take a charter flight back and Italy and Canada have announced similar decisions, while Taiwan and Australia are considering such a move.
The Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare on Saturday said that passengers older than 70 are being examined and those testing negative and in good health would be allowed to leave the ship starting on Wednesday.
Tests on younger passengers were expected to start yesterday and healthy people would be allowed to disembark after Wednesday, it said.
Meanwhile, Japan has seen 53 infections, including a dozen new cases reported on Saturday and 13 cases among more than 760 Japanese nationals and their relatives repatriated from Wuhan, China.
“If you look at the figures, we are seeing changing situations compared with before,” Kato said on the NHK show. “What we have to think about now is preventing cases from becoming severe and preventing deaths.”
Additional reporting by Reuters
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