Society

Final group disembarks from Diamond Princess

Mar 02 (NHK) - The final group of people on the Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined at Yokohama Port, near Tokyo, disembarked on Sunday.

Crew members who had tested negative for the new coronavirus began disembarking on Thursday.

About 130 crewmembers, including Indonesians, left the ship on Sunday.

They will quarantined for two weeks at a government facility in Saitama Prefecture, near Tokyo. They will then be allowed to leave Japan once they test negative for the virus again.

About 700 of the ship's approximately 3,700 passengers and crew have tested positive for the virus, and were transferred to hospitals in Japan.

Health minister Katsunobu Kato said the ship will be disinfected and undergo maintenance at a dockyard.

He said all officials from his ministry who were on board the ship have tested negative for the virus. Still, he said they will work from home for two weeks.

Kato expressed gratitude to medical workers, Self-Defense Forces personnel and municipalities that have accepted patients. He also thanked the captain of the ship and other crew members.

Source: ANNnewsCH

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