65 new virus cases on Japanese ship carrying several Indians

Tokyo, February 10

Passenger tests aboard the quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan confirmed at least 65 more cases of coronavirus on Monday, as some passengers took to social media to warn against depression over their confinement. The ship, carrying 3,711 passengers, has an unspecified number of Indians on board.

The death toll in the coronavirus outbreak in China has gone up to 908 with 97 new fatalities reported mostly in the worst-affected Hubei province and the confirmed cases of infection crossing 40,000.

The figure takes the tally on board to 135, showing a rapid rise in the outbreak on the ship docked in the port of Yokohama. The ship arrived at the Japanese coast early last week and was quarantined after a passenger who de-boarded last month in Hong Kong was found to be the carrier of the novel virus on the ship.

Among the new 65 cases are 45 Japanese and 11 Americans, Japan’s health ministry said.

Indian Embassy in Tokyo on Monday tweeted the information about the Indians on the ship. “Many Indian crew & some Indian passengers are on board the cruise ship Diamond Princess quarantined off Japan due to Coronavirus (nCoV),” it tweeted, without giving a specific number of Indians on the ship. “In this context, any query please contact First Secretary (Consular) @IndianEmbTokyo at fscons.tokyo@mea.gov.in @CPVIndia @MEAIndia @PMOIndia,” it said.

Quoting an Indian crew member, identified as Binay Kumar Sarkar, a news channel said there are 160 Indian crew members and eight Indian passengers on the ship. Sarkar, in a video recorded from the ship, appealed to the Indian government and the UN to segregate the Indians on board on urgent basis. “None of them have been checked (for coronavirus),” Sarkar, a chef from Bengal, said he was flanked by five of his Indians colleagues who were wearing masks.

According to an AFP report, people on board the ship are facing difficulty due to the quarantine measures, particularly those in windowless interior cabins and others who require medication. — Reuters/PTI

It May be tip of the iceberg, says WHO

Beijing: Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, chief of the World Health Organisation (WHO), has said there have been concerning instances of transmission from people who had not been to China. “The detection of a small number of cases may indicate more widespread transmission in other countries. In short, we may only be seeing the tip of the iceberg,” he said in Geneva. Reuters