First Cruise Ship To Sail Since March Gets Infected With COVID-19, 119 In Quarantine

The first cruise ship to resume sailing in the Caribbean amid the coronavirus pandemic was forced to end its trip early after five passengers tested positive for COVID-19.

Torbjorn Lund, the captain of the SeaDream 1, on Wednesday announced that a passenger had been diagnosed with COVID-19 on a preliminary basis. During his shipwide intercom address, the captain also asked the ship’s 119 passengers — which included 66 crew members — to isolate themselves in their cabins, The Points Guy reported.

Gene Sloan, a cruise ship reporter who was aboard the yacht-like vessel, said the SeaDream 1 was anchored off Union Island when the captain made the announcement.

According to his account, SeaDream had required all passengers to be tested before boarding. Every passenger had tested negative days before and on the day of boarding. While social distancing was required onboard the ship, the line only required passengers to wear masks two days after it began its voyage.

During the initial announcement on Wednesday, Lund said the passenger who tested positive had felt ill before the test. He also said the ship would end its current trip and arrive in Barbados around 10 p.m.

“Please allow a bit of extra time for us to adjust for this new situation,” Lund said. “We are confident in our routines and medical plans, but they are strict, and we apologize for this inconvenience.”

Lund made two more announcements within the day, where he revealed that the ship’s doctor had tested all the ship’s crews and passengers for COVID-19. None of the staff tested positive. Lund also said that at least five passengers were infected with the novel coronavirus pandemic.

SeaDream Yacht Club, the ship’s Norway-based parent company, refused to reveal the number of passengers who tested positive in the initial round of testing, The Guardian reported.

The incident marked the first time the cruise line had resumed its voyages since the pandemic began. The ship had made multiple stops, including St. Vincent and the Grenadines. However, the vessel only landed at empty beaches where passengers could focus on off-vessel activities without coming in contact with locals on the islands.