Ten people aboard a Norwegian Cruise Line ship approaching New Orleans have tested positive for COVID-19, the Louisiana Department of Health said Saturday night.
With over 3,000 passengers and crew, the cruise ship Norwegian Breakaway, owned by Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd, departed New Orleans on a weeklong cruise on November 28 and had stops in Belize, Honduras, and Mexico, reports Reuters.
According to a statement from the cruise line, Norwegian “has been adhering to appropriate quarantine and isolation protocols as new cases and exposures have been identified aboard this vessel.”
No information is available on the condition of those passengers who have tested positive for COVID-19.
Prior to disembarking in New Orleans, each person on board will be tested for the coronavirus. Anyone who tests positive will either go directly home or self-isolate in accommodations provided by the cruise line, officials said, according to ABC News.
Cruise ships were an early source of outbreaks last year at the start of the coronavirus pandemic as some ships were rejected at ports and passengers were forced into quarantine.
Some passengers died of COVID-19 at sea while others fell so ill they had to be carried out of the vessels on stretchers, reports US News.
According to Norwegian’s website, the company requires all passengers and crew members to have been vaccinated against the virus at least two weeks prior to departure.
