New measures to seal off borders to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus have left cruise ships stranded in the Caribbean, South America and Europe, with local governments denying permission to disembark as more cases of infected passengers have come to light.
Two cruise ships have been turned away from several Caribbean ports, and at least one by Spain, after passengers fell ill with COVID-19. Two other vessels have rerouted to Miami after they were turned away from their home port in Puerto Rico even with no reports of infections.
Authorities in Chile and Brazil, meanwhile, have also placed smaller ships on quarantine after reports of positive coronavirus tests.
The Cruise Lines Association says that about 40 ships and 90,000 passengers were at sea when President Donald Trump announced a travel ban last week that affects the arrival of many foreigners into the US.
A Fort Lauderdale-based ship from Italian company Costa Cruises was denied permission to disembark in Spain after the government decided to close the country's ports to passenger traffic.
The company, owned by Carnival Corp, says that three Costa Luminosa passengers who were removed from the ship in the Cayman Islands and Puerto Rico have tested positive for COVID-19, including a 68-year-old man who died last weekend.
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On Monday, two passengers who had problems breathing and one who had a fever were taken off the boat and to the hospital during a technical stop in the Canary Islands.
"I am super worried," said Ashley Ecker, a woman of San Diego whose parents boarded the Costa Luminosa in Fort Lauderdale on March 5. Ecker says her 66-year-old parents wanted to cancel their journey but the company refused to give them a refund and told them it was safe to travel.
"They are in that demographic the CDC is now saying 'don't go anywhere. Stay in your house,'" she said. "They need to get off the boat. The more they are on the boat, the more people will start getting sick."