Hurtigruten, one of the first cruise lines to resume service this summer, has reported a Covid-19 outbreak on one of the cruise ships that has been operating coastal Norway itineraries since June.
The line said that 36 of the 158 crew members on the ship, the Roald Amundsen, have tested positive for Covid-19 and that 120 are confirmed as negative. The ship is currently docked in Tromso, Norway, with no passengers on board.
Hurtigruten said it is in contact with all passengers that were on board the Roald Amundsen’s July 17 and 24 departures and that 209 passengers from the first sailing and 178 from the second will self-quarantine in line with Norwegian health authority regulations.
The Roald Amundsen cancelled its scheduled cruise to Svalbard that was to leave on July 31. The next cruise with the ship is not planned until September.
Of the 36 confirmed cases, 32 are from the Philippines. The rest are Norwegian, French and German nationals.
The line said that four crewmembers were isolated last week because of illness symptoms that were thought to not be related to Covid-19. They were then routinely tested before being admitted to hospital in Tromso on Friday.
Hurtigruten claimed to be the first line to resume sailings this summer when the Norway-based line launched domestic Norwegian coastal itineraries in mid-June and then added one sailing from Hamburg, Germany, all with limited capacity and enhanced hygiene protocols in place. It said it would ramp up operations from four to 16 ships by the end of September because demand has been so strong.
Hurtigruten said that all crewmembers are closely monitored and screened daily and that non-Norwegian crew are quarantined before boarding the ship and non-European crew need to undergo two negative Covid-19 tests before leaving their home country.
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