First COVID cruise death since restart of cruising scene
Carnival cruises has marked their first death since the cruise scene kicked back up, after a 77-year-old woman died from contracting COVID-19.
The woman departed on the Carnival Vista with her family on July 31, to sail to Belize, and soon tested positive for the novel virus after experiencing respiratory complications.
27 people tested positive over two weeks in late July and early August – the highest number of cases since cruises begun sailing again.
The New York Times reported she was a great-grandmother from Oklahoma.
The woman was admitted to a hospital in Belize and was put on a ventilator before being evacuated to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and undergoing treatment.
Images: Getty Images
The outbreak aboard the ship was discovered on the fourth day of an eight-day cruise.
Twenty-six of those who tested positive were all crew members except for one passenger.
The Texas Governor, Greg Abbott previously signed a law banning businesses from requiring proof of vaccination, however more than 96 per cent of passengers and all but one crew member on the Carnival Vista were fully vaccinated.
Authorities are unsure if the woman who has since passed was fully vaccinated or not.
“We are very sorry to hear about the death of a guest who sailed on Carnival Vista,” Carnival said in a statement.
“Regrettably, there is a fair amount of disinformation about the circumstances of this matter.
“The guest almost certainly did not contract COVID on our ship, and she was assisted with expert medical care on board and was ultimately evacuated from Belize after we provided a resource to her family. We have continued to provide support to her family and are not going to add to their sadness by commenting further.”
Carnival has updated its vaccination policy that states a majority of guests will be required to be vaccinated.
They must also present negative results of a COVID-19 test taken within three days before boarding a ship.
Carnival has also states all passengers are required to wear a mask while indoors from August 7.
“We have always required vaccinations. From our restart in July, 95+% guests have been vaccinated. We meet the definition of a vaccinated cruise,” a Carnival spokesperson said.
“And we added the testing requirement on July 28. (August) 28 is when new guidelines for the Bahamas go into effect.”