Cruise ship in limbo

World

Over 2000 people onboard the Holland America Line cruise ship, the MS Westerdam, are stranded on the open seas. The ship, with 1,455 passengers and 802 crew, has been turned away out of fear of the novel coronavirus, now officially COVID-19. The ship has been denied entry into Japan, Guam, Philippines, Taiwan, and most recently Thailand, despite the ship’s operator saying it has no reason to believe there are any cases of COVID-19 on board.

It was thought that he cruise ship could be forced to wait until it’s in distress – running out of water, food or fuel – before international law-of-the-sea conventions kick in and legally oblige the closest country to admit it or provide help, according to maritime experts.

Within the last hour, at the time of writing, it was confirmed that Cambodia has agreed to let the cruise ship to dock and disembark its passengers. Whether any passengers have the virus or not has yet to be confirmed.

SOURCE (REUTERS, TIME)

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