The COVID-19 test was positive in at least 17 of the passengers and crew that disembarked aboard a Norwegian Cruise Lines vessel docked in New Orleans.
According to a spokesperson for Louisiana Department of Health, nine of the crew and eight passengers became infected after the Norwegian Breakaway arrived at Port Arthur on Sunday.
Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), stated that none had signs and no one is allowed to board without being fully vaccinated. Passengers who were positive for the disease had to be either isolated in company accommodation or drive home. The ship also had at-home COVID-19 testing kits for all passengers.
Cruise line, which had previously set sail out from New Orleans with stops in Belize and Mexico, has now set sail again with a different group of passengers. According to the cruise line, all passengers on board Norwegian Breakaway Sunday had an opportunity to cancel their booking without any penalty.
DailyMail.com inquires about cancellations or passenger numbers were not answered by the company.
According to the statement, guests who decide to sail must use masks when indoors, except for while they are eating or drinking. They will also be tested during their cruise.
Breakaway is capable of carrying up to 3963 people. Its Caribbean route from New Orleans includes Cozumel and Costa Maya in Mexico; Roatán, in the Bay Islands of Honduras; and Harvest Caye, Belize.
FILE – People stop to admire Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Breakaway on the Hudson River in New York on May 8. 2013. New Orleans has been blessed by a new passenger on a ship which carried more than 17 passengers, including crew members who had COVID-19 breakout infections. According to the Louisiana Department of Health, nine of eight crew members and eight passengers contracted COVID-19 infections at New Orleans’ docking of Norwegian Breakaway. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)
Louisiana Department of Health posted updates to Twitter on the latest news about seven more COVID-19 patients who disembarked from New Orleans Sunday. One of these cases was Omicron, which has been confirmed among crew members.
Norwegian Cruise Ship has discovered 17 COVID-19 cases among crew and guests.
Norwegian Cruise Line previously stated that anyone who tests positive Sunday night would be able to drive home, or would stay with the company’s staff.
It is not clear how many passengers disembarked from NCL were given accommodation, or where they are located. NCL has yet to respond to Dailymail.com’s request for comment.
WVUE-TV received a report from some people that said that someone had told them that COVID-19 had been tested onboard, while others claimed that it hadn’t.
North Carolina resident Don Canole claimed that he was the first to hear about Don Canole’s experience after listening in on a conversation with someone close. It would have been great to know. He said that we would have taken a few extra precautions.
The passengers claimed that they were subject to COVID-19 testing on Saturday, before being allowed to board Sunday. According to WVUE, passengers were also given take-home quick tests after leaving the cruise ship.
CNN passenger Wade Berry said that he didn’t learn about the outbreak of illnesses onboard the ship. He only discovered it when his sister sent him a New Orleans statement.
He stated that everything was as usual on the night prior to the cruise’s disembarkation. “The show continued and bars were open. All was as normal.
He stated that he was permitted to return home with a three-day test.
A passenger who stepped off the Norwegian Cruise Line ship Sunday expressed dissatisfaction on Twitter. She said that she had’so much questions and some serious concern, how about an honest direct communication by you to us ingoodfaith#NEVERaskedforvacproof #wantmyresults.
One passenger, who had been on the exact same itinerary one week before but was aboard a different NCL ship, said that she was just on NCL Joy and on the same itinerary one week prior. Completely vaccinated, and pre-embarkation tested. This Breakaway story isn’t complete. NCL claims that no one has symptoms, but 10 people have tested positive. ‘Why were they not tested if there are no symptoms?
Norwegian Cruise responded to Sunday’s epidemic by issuing a statement stating that they take the issue ‘extremely serious’ and will work with the CDC office of Governor John Bel Edwards and the Louisiana Department of Health.
Lynne Smith, a passenger tweeted NCL had never requested proof of vaccination. This seems to indicate that the company did not give ‘honest directions’ to Sunday’s passengers.
Jeff tweeted a photo of passengers waiting for their turn on the NCL Breakaway. The tweet was posted by a Twitter user.
NCL was questioned by another Twitter user, asking why NCL tested the ten individuals who had been described as “asymptomatic” if they didn’t show any symptoms.
At the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in 2013, cruise ships became an important source of infection. Some of these ships were stopped at ports, while others were seized and passengers placed into quarantine.
In March 2020, the CDC declared a no-sail directive. This caused a standstill which ended in June last year when cruise ships started to depart U.S. ports following new safety and health requirements.
COVID-19 was fatal to some passengers at sea, while other victims fell so sick that they were unable to walk.
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a no-sail directive in March 2020. It caused a standstill which ended last June, when cruise ships were allowed to leave U.S. port with updated safety and health regulations.
Norwegian says that all crew and passengers must have had the flu shot at least 2 weeks before departure.
Due to fears about spreading COVID-19, a No Sail Order for Ships was issued in March 2020.
A Framework for Conditional sailing Order was issued by the CDC on October 30, 2022. This included setting up laboratory testing areas for ship crew members. Simulated voyages were also made in order to evaluate the operator’s abilities to manage COVID patients onboard.
This order continues to be extended, and will remain in force until January 15, 2022.
Concerns about travel operations are a hot topic with COVID cases rising again. This is especially true for the Omicron variant.
Omicron was initially discovered in South Africa, and it has since spread to 16 US states.
The Omicron virus variant may be more easily transmissible than the other strains of the virus. Current vaccines will not protect it. There is still no way to know how this new variant will affect large-scale travel or other activities related to large crowds.
Recently, a Minnesota man tested positive for the Omicron variant of COVID-19 after traveling to a New York City anime convention last month.
The man, who has not been identified, reportedly alerted health officials in his home state of the potential spread – which he says affected approximately 15 members from the 35-strong friendship group.
His friends may have been infected with the Omicron variant, which is more easily transmissible than the previous respiratory viruses.
Officials with the Minnesota Department of Health said that the crowd gathered at Manhattan’s Jacob K. Javits Center (Midtown) sometime between November 19-21.
According to the department, approximately half of those who tested positive for the disease were found in the following days. Participants had to be immunized before they could enter the event. However, it’s not clear if anyone in the infected group was under 12.
The man, – who was one of the first to test positive for the Omicron strain in the US since it surfaced in southern Africa late last month – was fully vaccinated and had a booster shot.
The man is the first, according to the department. The virus was exhibited in mild manifestations on the 22nd of November, the day following the convention.
Two days later, the officials said that the man tested positive and was the second in America to test positive.
The friend group members were from a variety of countries across the country, prompting concerns that the convention may have contributed to the spread of the strain across the nation.
These fears were confirmed by Ned Lamont, Connecticut’s Governor, reporting the first case of the disease in the state. The victim was a 60-year-old man who attended the convention with a relative.
Officials say that both the man and his relative had been fully vaccinated. They experienced only mild symptoms.
Omicron cases are appearing in many states, and all over the globe. Many appear to have connections to those who recently traveled to South Africa, such as the San Francisco resident who was the first American to report a case.
A man from Minnesota told officials that he traveled to the United States last month prior to attending the convention.
After traveling to NYC, a Minnesotan man was tested for COVID-19.
The convention was called Anime NYC and more than 53,000. Guests came from across the nation to Manhattan’s Javits Center.
Omicron arrives at a moment when Omicron is needed because hospitals all over the country are experiencing a spike in coronavirus infections. Most of these cases can be traced to Omicron, as well as staff shortages.
Kristalina Georgieva of the International Monetary Fund stated that this new variant might also slow down global economic recovery in much the same way as Delta.
She stated that even before this variant was introduced, she had concerns about the speed of recovery.
“A new variation that spreads very quickly can cause doubt.”
Fox News spoke to Dr. Vivek Muthy, the surgeon general. Although he expressed concerns about the fast rate at which the new variant is being developed, he attempted to calm the fears by saying there was no need to panic.
Murthy said that it was a good reason not to panic and that being more cautious is better than ever.
‘We do know that the measures that we take to protect ourselves from the spread of COVID — including wearing masks in indoor spaces, being in well-ventilated spaces – those work and will work against omicron,’ he continued.
Chris: “We also know about vaccines that although we still have to work out exactly how much protection against omicron our vaccines provide, we have always seen that the vaccinated fare better, and are generally more protected from hospitalizations and deaths than the non-vaccinated.
“That’s why, we urge people to get vaccinated.
Murthy claimed that, despite growing concerns about the virus’ spread, they are better prepared now than at the start of its development.
‘I just want to make sure people understand this very clearly: We are not back in March 2020, despite the prospect of a new variant – omicron – on the horizon and despite the fact that we found cases here,’ he said.
“We have more protection tools than we know how to use.”
CNN interview: Dr. Anthony Fauci said that it doesn’t look like the new variant is causing a lot of severeness.
However, he said that further research and studies are needed to reach more conclusions.
Fauci also gave praise to South Africa’s efficiency in this period of US travel ban.
“We feel extremely sorry for the difficulties that this might have caused not only South Africa, but also other African countries,” he said.
He stated that he hoped the ban on travel will be lifted within a reasonable time.
Massachusetts announced Saturday its first confirmed case, one day after New Jersey and Georgia reported theirs.
It has also been found in Nebraska, Minnesota and California.
It could take up to weeks to identify if the variant causes severe disease, if it’s more infectious and what effective treatment and vaccines it requires.
Michael Ryan, WHO’s emergency director for emergencies, stated that he was going to provide the solutions everyone requires.
The outbreak of Omicron in the province of Gauteng in South Africa, where it surfaced, has triggered the sharpest rise in hospitalizations of any previous wave.
Gauteng has had over 1000 hospital admissions within the last week. This is quadruple the number recorded two weeks ago. Meanwhile, South Africa saw 1,802 hospitalizations during the week ending Friday, the most recent day data are available.
This virus appears more spreadable, with the number of cases increasing from about 300 three weeks back to close to 7,000 over a seven day rolling average.
The latest statistics show that cases rose by an incredible 408 Percent in one week, while the number of deaths increased from eight to 21 over the same time.
On Saturday, the country’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases registered another 16,366 new cases. The majority of these were in Gauteng province. This is a 408 per cent increase over last weekend which saw just 3,220 new infections recorded within the past 24 hours.
Since Omicron’s discovery, South Africa has seen a dramatic increase in the number of cases. This month the country saw 358 new cases per day, as opposed to 6,381 currently registered. This is the lowest daily number since Tuesday. However, it is because of low weekend testing rates with only 24,159 people being swabbed yesterday. The positivity rate — the proportion of all tests conducted that are confirmed Covid cases — rose to a record 26.4 per cent
The virus was found in 175 South Africans, an increase of 121.5 percent on the number of 79 patients admitted last Monday. In a single week, there are 3,517 people in hospitals with the virus. This is an increase of 51.1 percentage. Image: The graph displays weekly Covid hospitalizations
We don’t know which version of these cases were recorded.
On Saturday, 21 people died in Omicron. This is an increase of 162 percent from the 8 reported deaths last week.
The latest figures bring the total number of cases in South Africa up to 3,020,569, while the number of deaths have increased to a total of 89,956.
South Africa has seen a dramatic rise in cases due to Omicron’s spread, according scientists. It is now in every province of South Africa.
Sharing Omicron figures from the Steve Biko/Tshwane District Hospital Complex, she tweeted: ‘Most COVID-19 patients didn’t know they had COVID when they got admitted (they were admitted for another condition).’
Public Health officials in Gauteng — where Johannesburg is based — say their R rate has surged to 3.5 from around one a month ago. This means that every 10 people who have been infected by the virus now spread it to 35 more. The R-rate in the UK is currently at 1.6.
Omicron is infectious, but it’s not doubtful. There are growing concerns about its ability to evade vaccines as well as how serious it could cause. A pre-print published in the country found the variant was at least two-and-a-half times better at re-infecting people than all other variants.
