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Hurtigruten crew members and passengers test positive for Covid-19

An outbreak of coronavirus has been reported on board Hurtigruten’s expedition cruise ship MS Roald Amundsen.

Four crew members were confirmed positive Friday, which led to all 158 crew members being tested for Covid-19, with a further 32 positive tests taking the total number of infections to 36. Hurtigruten said 122 tests came back negative but four passengers tested positive.

The ship is currently docked in Tromsø, Norway with no guests on board.

None of the 154 crew members still on board the ship – including the 32 new confirmed positive tests on Saturday – has shown any symptoms of Covid-19, Hurtigruten said.

Vice president global communications, Rune Thomas Ege, said: “We are now focusing all available efforts in taking care of our guests and colleagues. We work closely with the Norwegian national and local health authorities for follow-up, information, further testing, and infection tracking.

The line said the initial four crew members that were infected were isolated “several days ago” because of other disease symptoms, and did not show symptoms of Covid-19. It said they were “routinely tested” before being admitted to hospital in Tromsø on Friday morning.

Hurtigruten is in contact with all guests that were on board MS Roald Amundsen’s July 17 and 24 departures.

It said 209 guests from the first voyage, and 178 guests from the July 24 departure, will self-quarantine in line with Norwegian health authority regulations and that Hurtigruten has assisted guests with transport, accommodation, food and other needs.

Ege added: “The safety and well-being of our guests and crew is Hurtigruten’s number one priority. All crew members are closely monitored and screened daily. Non-Norwegian crew members are quarantined before boarding the ship, and non-European crew need to undergo two negative Covid-19 tests before even leaving their home country.”

MS Roald Amundsen scheduled sailing to Svalbard on Friday afternoon was cancelled. The next cruise with the ship is not planned until September.

Meanwhile, passengers aboard the Paul Gauguin – docked in Papeete, Tahiti – have been told to stay in their cabins after Covid-19 was detected on board by the ship’s doctor, according to local reports.

The Paul Gauguin Cruises’ vessel was sailing between Bora Bora and the Rangiroa islands in the Pacific, when a positive case was detected. The ship immediately returned to its home port.

Paul Gauguin resumed sailing on July 18 for local residents and on July 29 for international passengers. French Polynesia opened its borders to all nationalities on July 15.

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