Mauritius bans cruises with Brazilians from docking for two days, due to health risks; Should be going down this morning| world

The country's authorities prevented a cruise ship from docking in Mauritius on Saturday (24) due to a health risk. Some passengers on the ship, which was carrying at least 20 Brazilians, showed symptoms of gastroenteritis. After testing and Two days of waitingThe ship's residents were released on Monday (26) to disembark. Which should happen in the early hours of Monday to Tuesday Brasilia time (Tuesday morning local time).

The cruise lasted 12 days, departed South Africa and was bound for Mauritius on Sunday (25). Three stops on the route are planned in South African cities, two in Madagascar, one on Reunion Island and the last in Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius.

According to what a passenger on board the ship heard g1Some people on board the plane began to feel sick, with symptoms of gastroenteritis, midway through the flight between South Africa and Madagascar. For this reason, the ship was prohibited from docking on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean The Mauritian authorities expressed concern about suspected cholera among passengers.

The commander announced via loudspeakers the outbreak of cholera in some African countries, including the eastern coast of South Africa, where he passed. The symptoms of cholera and gastroenteritis are similarwith severe diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, and intestinal cramps.

Without this stop at Reunion Island, the ship arrived in Mauritius on Saturday afternoon (local time), but only approached the island and slowed down. At night, Health workers came on board wearing masks, clipboards and thermometers. They took samples of water, food, and patients and interviewed people in the ship's main hall.

“I was very nervous and afraid. Imagine the situation, just a few meters from the Mauritius Islands, without being able to leave the ship and still waiting for test results that could detect cases of cholera here. It is very difficult to remain calm.” Journalist Isabella Scalabrini, who was on the ship with her husband, told g1.

The port authority told Reuters that it had collected samples from about 15 passengers who were reported to be isolated on board the ship. Samples take between 24 to 48 hours to produce results, and disembarkation is prohibited until a negative result for cholera is obtained. According to the passenger interviewed by g1, at no time did the ship's crew report the number of patients.

The Norwegian Dawn ship had 2,184 passengers and 1,026 crew members on board, and about 2,000 passengers were supposed to disembark in Port Louis, according to the port authority. 2,279 new passengers are expected to board the ship and make the reverse journey.

According to a spokesman for the Norwegian cruise company, once the ship arrived in Porto Luis, the crew cooperated with local authorities to ensure health precautions were taken.

According to local authorities, “the decision not to allow the cruise ship to reach the pier was taken to avoid any health risks.”

Monday (26) Two days after his arrival in MauritiusGood news: The test results came back and cholera was ruled out, it was just gastroenteritis. Thus, the passengers and crew members were released for disembarkation, which was supposed to take place in the early hours of the day (Tuesday morning local time).

According to Isabella Scalabrini, the migration of passengers took place inside the ship at night.

“When the captain announced that the tests had only revealed cases of gastroenteritis, I cried with joy. Many people on the ship rejoiced, it felt very good, no illnesses and they were released. Imagine being in real quarantine here, for several days? ” He said.

The ship docked at a dock in Porto Luis early Monday afternoon (local time), with only a few crew members disembarking.

A combination of stress, normalcy and complaints

While permission to dock was not granted, The ship's schedule continued normallyIt features a pool, a show, dinners and games to try to relax passengers, Isabella said. There was no need for isolation, and from time to time the commander would provide updates over the loudspeaker.

But, according to Isabella, The atmosphere was tense on the ship. Not only was there the possibility of contracting the disease while the results were not in, but there was also anger from many at missing their flights. Many passengers demanded their money back from Norwegian, which operated the flight, but the company only offered a discount on future flights.

She did not need to reschedule her trip, but she would stay there for one day instead of the scheduled three.