Japan has confirmed that 33 additional crew members onboard the Costa Atlantica cruise ship, which is docked in Nagasaki prefecture, have tested positive for novel coronavirus on Wednesday.
In a news conference, officials from the Nagasaki prefecture said those with symptoms will be admitted to medical centers, while asymptomatic patients will remain onboard in isolated private rooms.
This brings the total number of confirmed cases onboard the ship to 34, after one crew member tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday.
The cruise ship, operated by Italian cruise liner Costa Crociere, has been docked in Japan since March for repairs with 623 crew members. No passengers are currently onboard the ship.
The novel coronavirus has now infected more than 2.5 million people and killed at least 177,000 worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University.
If you’re just joining us, here are the latest developments:
- More money to fight the pandemic: The US Senate approved a roughly $480 billion relief package with funds for small business, hospitals and testing. It comes on the heels of several other massive stimuli passed by Congress: a $2 trillion rescue package, a $192 billion relief measure and another $8.3 billion plan approved last month. Democratic leaders are already planning for another massive rescue bill.
- Worries about flu season: The director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the coronavirus outbreak could be “even more difficult” next winter because it would coincide with flu season.
- New information about the virus: The novel coronavirus lingers for as long as three weeks in the bodies of patients with severe disease, Chinese researchers reported. The virus can be found deep in the lungs and in the stool of patients, and the sicker they are, the longer it stays, the team at a hospital in China’s Zhejiang province reported.
- Holidays on hold: Indonesia has banned all citizens from traveling to their hometowns for Eid al-Fitr celebrations in an effort to contain the spread of the virus. Millions of people traditionally make the annual trip to see their families.
- Italy’s plan to fight the virus: The country’s prime minister unveiled a five-point plan to handle the coronavirus outbreak that will include social distancing, reinforcing the country’s beleaguered health care system and contact tracing.