Coronavirus: Grand Princess cruise ship will dock Monday in California after 21 people test positive for virus
- There are more than 3,500 people on board the liner waiting to disembark
- Donald Trump said he would prefer not to allow the passengers onto American soil but will defer to the recommendations of medical experts
The Grand Princess cruise ship will begin to allow guests to disembark Monday after 21 people aboard tested positive for coronavirus on Friday.
Princess Cruises announced early Sunday it had been informed by state and local officials that the cruise, off the coast of California, would be able to dock in the Port of Oakland on Monday, though an exact time was not available, cruise line public relations director Negin Kamali told USA TODAY.
Guests who “require acute medical treatment and hospitalisation” will be first to disembark. Kamali said it was “unclear” if other passengers would also be allowed off the ship Monday, or if they would have to wait further.
“California residents will go to a federally operated facility within California for testing and isolation, while non-Californians will be transported by the federal government to facilities in other states,” read a statement provided by Kamali. “Crew will be quarantined and treated aboard the ship.”
Before the announcement, the more than 3,500 people on Princess Cruises’ Grand Princess remained in limbo earlier Saturday evening as they awaited further information on when and where the cruise ship would dock.
Only 45 passengers and crew members have been tested, and of those who tested positive, 19 were crew members and two were passengers.
A California man who died on Wednesday was likely infected with coronavirus before he boarded the Grand Princess last month.