Within the span of 2 weeks, over 600 passengers on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship moored off the city of Yokohama have tested positive for Covid-19.
2 elderly patients who tested positive for the virus have also died on Thursday (20 Feb).
Of the 3,700 passengers on board the cruise initially, 5 are Singaporeans.
On Friday (21 Feb), the 5 Singaporean passengers were finally allowed to disembark, after spending 14 days quarantined on the ship.
In a statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), the Singapore authorities thanked the Japanese government for the assistance rendered during the quarantine period.
It appears that the 5 Singaporeans will remain in Japan for an additional 14 days before returning to Singapore.
However, in the event where they choose to return to Singapore within 14 days of their disembarkation, the group will be placed on quarantined as a precautionary measure.
In the same statement, the MFA said that it will continue to maintain contact with the 5 Singaporeans and have advised them to “monitor their health closely during this period”.
As of Thursday (20 Feb), all 5 Singaporeans were “physically well” after being quarantined on the cruise for more than 2 weeks, reported The Straits Times.
We hope the 5 Singaporeans will continue to stay healthy.
Spending 2 weeks in quarantine on board a ship is surely not enjoyable but is a necessary measure to curb the spread of the virus.
We hope the 5 of them will return home to their friends and loved ones soon, who undoubtedly would have missed them dearly.
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Featured image adapted from AFP Forum.
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