A cruise ship from the Princess Cruise line docked in San Francisco on Thursday after random COVID testing of 1 / 4 of the passengers revealed 12 positives on board.
The ten-day cruise to Mexico is likely one of the practically 100 cruise ships beneath investigation by the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention due to COVID circumstances as of Thursday.
The 12 passengers, all vaccinated, are asymptomatic or have gentle signs, based on a press release from the Port of San Francisco. A Princess Cruises spokesperson advised The Related Press the vaccination charge on the ship was "approaching one hundred pc."
The Omicron variant has brought on concern on the planet of cruise ships, because the variant has confirmed to be extra transmissible amongst those that are vaccinated than previous variants.
Final week, the CDC really useful that each one Individuals ought to keep away from cruise ships till Omicron and COVID at massive subsides, prompting responses from a number of cruise strains highlighting the security requirements the trade is being held to.
Of the 22 cruises which have docked in San Francisco with COVID-positive passengers or crew, not one of the circumstances have required hospitalization, and the port mentioned all of the ships have complied with CDC and San Francisco public well being pointers.
Cruise ships are required to inform the CDC of suspected or confirmed optimistic circumstances on board, and any vessel with 0.10 p.c of passenger circumstances meet the factors for investigation.
Cruise ships returned to San Francisco in October after a 19-month hiatus. The pause was sparked in March 2020 when the Grand Princess carried individuals contaminated with the coronavirus, sending hundreds of passengers to quarantine of their cabins because the ship idled off the California coast. The ill-fated cruise captured the world's consideration and made the coronavirus actual to tens of millions in the US.
When enterprise resumed, most cruise strains required grownup passengers to point out proof of vaccination in opposition to COVID-19.
As a result of surge, San Francisco can be asking cruise ships to check passengers who haven't acquired their second doses or booster photographs earlier than letting them come ashore.
"This requirement is stricter than federal and state pointers and is meant to guard the individuals of San Francisco," port officers mentioned.
The passengers who examined optimistic will both go house or be taken to accommodations for quarantine, spokeswoman Negin Kamali mentioned.
One other Ruby Princess cruise ship is ready to depart from San Francisco Thursday afternoon for an additional 10-day cruise to Mexico, she mentioned.
The Related Press contributed to this report.
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