national

3 more coronavirus cases found on cruise ship in Yokohama

23 Comments
By Kazuhiro Nogi

The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.

© 2020 AFP

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

23 Comments
Login to comment

Is it safe to say japan should stop allowing flights from China now???

hewa boke :0(

10 ( +12 / -2 )

Passengers on the ship have been asked to stay inside their cabins to prevent new infections and have expressed confusion and frustration.

Why the confusion? They have access to information regarding this virus, and know the "why" they are not being allowed to disembark, so where is the confusion coming from?

Frustration I can understand. Anyone in that situation would be frustrated.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

I am sorry that the passengers and crew on the ship have bee exposed but ....for the sake of the welfare of millions a few thousand will need to suffer the consequences of fate and chance. It may get worse for them if the virus spreads as it may indeed do, and frankly I am not sure that ship will be able to disembark anywhere.

I am glad Japan is showing the strength of will and fortitude to stand strong and do what is best for their country.

0 ( +5 / -5 )

@Cris

does that include allowing thousands of Chinese tourist to come everyday?

6 ( +7 / -1 )

If some cases appear here and there, which is surely the case from some days before, quarantine is useless. You are not going to stop living for that. Chances you die from another reason is higher but you don't know yet.

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

Two weeks isn't going to do anything if the virus is on the boat eventually everyone will be infected, you need to isolate people to stop the infection

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Two weeks isn't going to do anything if the virus is on the boat eventually everyone will be infected, you need to isolate people to stop the infection

From each other, right?

@Cris

does that include allowing thousands of Chinese tourist to come everyday?

Apparently, you can just take some medicine to lower your fever and pass the screening easily. So, selfish Chinese tourists are continuing to spread the virus.

China should ban people from leaving for a set period of time. If they don't want to look like the bad guy then let the other countries ban Chinese people from entering. Either way the virus would die out.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

While I can empathize with those stuck on the luxury cruiser, it still doesn't mean I nor others especially concerning family members to be infected because of the whims of a few. As I said early on, this is a serious and dangerous virus with no cure at the moment. Many have taken it lightly by stating I won't catch it, I have the flu shot, well sorry this isn't influenza, and your quite mistaken. Why folks are still out there traveling to this area is foolish and selfish. Don't be a hero stay indoors and put in place so that this virus can be limited.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

@numan yes, if someone is sick and doesn't show signs until day 13 but has been in contact with a few other people, the other people should now have to wait another 14 days. Thus this time cycle has to reset everytime a new case if found until no new cases for 14 days. Therefore these people need to stay on the boat for a long time

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Thus this time cycle has to reset everytime a new case if found until no new cases for 14 days. Therefore these people need to stay on the boat for a long time

Given that the people on the boat are largely confined to their cabins, apart from a brief period in which they exercise in isolation, this is not necessarily the case.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Hong Kong has now put a quarantine on people travelling there from the mainland. If they can do it to somewhere that is basically part of the same country, we really need to ask the question why Japan isn't doing it.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

vietnam has stopped all flights from china, period. US/Aus/NZ all blocked people with recent history in china. when will japan do the same? there might still be tourist yens coming in now, but continuing to allowing flights in is going to backfire big time.

and they think they are still going to have the olympics in summer???!

0 ( +1 / -1 )

A couple of thoughts:

It seems strange that only passengers have been infected so far. There are about a thousand crew, and none of them have been sickened? Seems hard to believe. Have they been tested? If some of them are sick, and they are taking care of the passengers, they might spread the illness further.

Secondly, seems to me that the period of quarantine should be for 14 days after the last person shows signs of infection, not 14 days after the first person becomes sick. If no one shows signs of illness for at least ANOTHER 14 days, only then might it be reasonable to say that no one onboard is likely to show signs of sickness again.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

It seems strange that only passengers have been infected so far. There are about a thousand crew, and none of them have been sickened? Seems hard to believe. Have they been tested? If some of them are sick, and they are taking care of the passengers, they might spread the illness further.

One crew member was among the initial 10 cases.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

This is a very selective bio-weaponized disease. How can I newly wed couple have only one person infected and not the other.... ?

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Since first 14 days quarantine started, I wonder how many more days left to get out of the ship? Maybe not, Every time infected passengers get out of the ship to go to hospital, the rest of passengers start all over another 14 days quarantine again? If so, it would take a couple of years for them to get out. Ship is a prison, isn't it?

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Secondly, seems to me that the period of quarantine should be for 14 days after the last person shows signs of infection, not 14 days after the first person becomes sick. If no one shows signs of illness for at least ANOTHER 14 days, only then might it be reasonable to say that no one onboard is likely to show signs of sickness again.

Yes, as of yesterday this was decided by the government, and they should be therefore renewed to stay a further 14 days starting today.

See here:

https://www.npr.org/2020/02/07/803843303/on-cruise-ship-quarantined-in-japan-any-new-cases-would-reset-the-isolation-cloc

3 ( +3 / -0 )

You guys know, that until a few hundred regular Japanese get sick, and a few die, nothing will change. By then, just assume we are all gonna catch the virus. Hopefully its exactly what the PRC is reporting with a 2% fatality rate. Im sure they wouldn't lie about what is actually happening. Communist governments are very truthful.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

what about the ship no country will allow to dock! they are desperate for help!

And how many other cruise ships are out there incubating another boat load of hapless disease spreaders?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

The damage to Japan is going to be large!

Foreigners look at Japan as a source of infection.

Walk around any international airport in Japan, 99% of people are masked!

Entire flight crews are wearing them on flights out of Japan.

The perception out there is that Japan is dangerous.....

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

Minds smarter than mine need to figure this out, but seems that while keeping the passengers quarantined aboard the ship(s) helps to protect those on land, it may not be the best way to treat the passengers. Perhaps an island with adequate facilities would be a more humane and more efficient way to deal with the need for quarantine. On the ship it is an "all or none are cleared" situation, but on land they could be hermetically isolated in familial groups, and thus released bit by bit.

This really is a mess. While praise is due to the ship's crew for doing all they can to take care of the passengers while trying to maintain cleanliness up to the standards of a hospital, I think that without a large, medically professional staff on-board, the crew may inadvertently spread the disease while they try to do their best.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

1glenn,

“Perhaps an island with adequate facilities would be a more humane and more efficient way to deal with the need for quarantine.”

Any suggestions as to which island in Japan is ready to suddenly and suitably accommodate about 3,700 people for quarantine?

I notice Australia used Christmas Island but that was for less than 300 people.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I don't have answers, just ideas and questions.

Americans from China have been flown back to The States, and are being kept in quarantine before being released into the general population. Perhaps something like that could be done with the Americans on the ship. Japanese and American authorities are so far agreeing that American passengers should go to hospitals in Japan. Perhaps Japanese and American authorities could agree to transport American passengers, who do not show symptoms, to a place, overseas or back home, where they could be kept in quarantine. This would make the jobs of the crew on the ship, and of the Japanese authorities, easier.

Likewise, passengers from other countries could be moved and dealt with by authorities from their own countries, whether from China, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, or wherever.

I do not dispute that quarantining the ship has been a good idea, only that alternative actions might maintain the quarantine while treating the crew and passengers better. They could all be treated more humanely, and perhaps the rate of infection would be reduced.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites