Cordelia Cruise logs 123 new COVID cases out of 995 onboard; total count stands at 189

The Cordelia cruise ship turned into a COVID-19 hotspot after 66 passengers on board tested positive for the virus amid a surge in the Omicron variant across India. The ship en route Goa, carrying over 2,000 passengers, was sent back to Mumbai on Monday night after 27 passengers, who had tested positive, refused to disembark, said Govind Pernulkar, manager at a local ship agent. As of Monday, 66 passengers on board were tested positive for the virus. 

As 66 passengers contracted the virus, the remaining passengers on board were advised to do RT-PCR of the remaining passengers before disembarking at the green gate. The passengers are not be allowed to disembark till the time the results come. 

According to Republic sources, out of 995 passengers, whose tests were done, 123 passengers have tested positive for COVID-19. The remaining 832 passengers have been tested by another medical laboratory and their reports are still awaited. Thus, the total count of infections on the cruise liner stands at 189. 

Cordelia Cruise ship issues first statement

In the official statement, Jurgen Bailom, CEO and President- Waterways Leisure Tourism Pvt Ltd, said that they had complied with all rules and regulations stipulated by the Directorate General of Shipping, India, and followed all COVID protocols. However, the crew member who had first tested COVID positive was isolated immediately. He, however, alleged a lack of empathy from the authorities as no one was allowed to disembark the ship in Goa.

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