MS ZAANDAM

MIAMI – The Coral Princess cruise ship arrived at Port Miami Saturday morning, hours after being denied entry at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale. On Saturday night, one of the very first groups of passengers cleared to return, 50 Floridians, departed the Coral Princess ship. Princess Cruises, a subsidiary of Carnival Corp., switched the Coral Princess’ original destination from Fort Lauderdale. The Coral Princess departed March 5 from Chile. The Regal Princess delivered supplies to the Coral Princess.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The coronavirus pandemic nightmare isn’t over for 26 people who remain quarantined and sick aboard a plagued cruise ship at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale. (Local 10 News)Only one crew member and 13 passengers were allowed to disembark the MS Zaandam on Thursday at Port Everglades. Workers in full personal protective equipment handled the luggage and disinfect it at Port Everglades. Carnival Corp. arranged for private transporation for Americans who were stranded at sea in one of their cruise ships. Passengers look out from the Zaandam cruise ship, anchored in the bay of Panama City, Friday, March 27, 2020.

MIAMI - Florida officials have agreed to allow two Holland America Line cruise ships afflicted with the coronavirus to dock at a port in Fort Lauderdale, resolving a days-long impasse that drew the attention of President Donald Trump, NBC reported on Thursday. REUTERS/Erick Marciscan/File PhotoThe agreement would allow the cruise lines Rotterdam and Zaandam ships to dock at the Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale after 27 days at sea, according to an NBC News article. Four passengers aboard the Zaandam have died, two of them after becoming infected by the coronavirus, NBC said. U.S. Representative Donna Shalala of Florida said earlier on Thursday that it was immoral not to accept the cruise ship passengers. Its probably going to be strange for us, he told NBC.

REUTERS/Erick Marciscan/File PhotoWASHINGTON - A deal has been reached to allow two Holland America Line ships to dock in Florida and most of the 2,500 passengers on board to disembark, including foreign nationals, NBC News reported on Thursday, citing unnamed sources. The agreement would allow the cruise lines Rotterdam and Zaandam ships to dock at the Port of Everglades in Fort Lauderdale after 27 days at sea, according to NBC. Not all passengers would be leaving the ships, NBC said, adding 45 severely sick passengers will remain on board. Carnival Corp (CCL.N) owns the Dutch cruise ship line. Representatives for the cruise line and the state could not be immediately reached to comment on the NBC report.

(Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday urged Florida officials to open an Atlantic Coast port to a Dutch cruise ship stuck at sea with a deadly coronavirus outbreak onboard, urging the governor to drop his opposition. But it remained uncertain who would be permitted to disembark in Florida, where concerns about the spread of coronavirus were mounting. FILE PHOTO: The Holland America Line cruise ship MS Zaandam is pictured, where passengers have died onboard, as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues, in Panama City, Panama March 28, 2020. Florida lawmakers on Tuesday were deadlocked over whether to welcome the Zaandam, with some seeking more information. FILE PHOTO: The cruise ship MS Zaandam, where passengers have died on board, navigates through the pacific side of the Panama Canal, in Panama City, Panama, as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues, March 29, 2020.

MIAMI (Reuters) - The U.S. government and Florida were working on a plan on Wednesday to allow thousands of cruise ship passengers exposed to an onboard coronavirus outbreak to disembark, a day after President Donald Trump urged the governor to drop his opposition to their docking. FILE PHOTO: The cruise ship MS Zaandam, where passengers have died on board, navigates through the pacific side of the Panama Canal, in Panama City, Panama, as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues, March 29, 2020. But he said a clear protocol was needed to protect residents of his South Florida city from infection. Nearly two-thirds of its passengers, those who passed a medical screening, were moved to the lines sister ship, the Rotterdam. FILE PHOTO: The cruise ship MS Zaandam, where passengers have died on board, navigates through the pacific side of the Panama Canal, in Panama City, Panama, as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues, March 29, 2020.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Holland America Line, a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation, deployed a ship to deliver coronavirus test kits to the MS Zaandam cruise ship heading to Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale. The MS Zaandam’s voyage continues with 1,829 people on board, including 30 guests and 47 crew members who have reported coronavirus symptoms and haven’t been off the ship since March 14 in Chile. “Holland America Line has deployed Rotterdam to rendezvous with Zaandam and provide extra supplies, staff, COVID-19 test kits and other support as needed,” a cruise line representative wrote in a statement. Carrying 611 crew and no guests, Rotterdam departed Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, on Sunday and is set to meet with MS Zaandam’s crew on Thursday evening off the coast of Panama. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Florida Department of Health in Broward County, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Customs & Border Protection and the Port Everglades Pilots Association are assessing the situation.