Coronavirus: Two Indians On Isolated Japan Cruise Ship Test Positive; 242 New Deaths In China

In a video recorded from the ship on Monday, an Indian crew member, Binay Kumar Sarkar, appealed to the Indian government and the UN to segregate the Indians on board on urgent basis.

The Diamond Princess cruise ship, with around 3,600 people quarantined onboard due to fears of the deadly COVID-19 coronavius, is seen anchored at the Daikaku Pier Cruise Terminal in Yokohama on February 12, 2020. - (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)

New Delhi: Two Indian crew onboard a cruise ship ‘Diamond Princess’ off the Japanese coast have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the Indian Embassy in Japan said on Wednesday. They have requested the Indian government for help in a video message. The cruise ship carrying 3,711 people on board arrived at the Japanese coast early last week was quarantined after a passenger who de-boarded last month in Hong Kong was found to be the carrier of the novel virus on the ship. A total of 138 Indians, including 132 crew and 6 passengers, were on board the ship. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday said that two Indian crew members have tested positive and the Indian Embassy in Japan is in constant touch with the crew & passengers rendering all necessary support & assistance.

2 Indian crew members have tested positive for #Coronavirus. Will keep you updated.

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) February 13, 2020

Our Embassy @IndianEmbTokyo is in constant touch with the crew & passengers of #DiamondPrincess off Yokohama, Japan, rendering all necessary support & assistance. Passengers & crew are currently quarantined by Japanese authorities. @mkstalin

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) February 13, 2020

"Due to the suspicion of novel coronavirus (nCoV) infection, the ship has been quarantined by the Japanese authorities till February 19, 2020," the embassy said in a statement. "As of February 12, 2020, altogether 174 people have been tested positive for nCoV, including two Indian crew members," it said. All the infected people have been taken to hospitals for adequate treatment, including further quarantine, in accordance with the Japanese health protocol, it said. The Indian Embassy was in constant touch with the Japanese authorities to ensure the welfare of Indian nationals on board the ship as well as the possibility of their early disembarkation, in case they are not found to have tested positive for the virus, it said. Japanese authorities have confirmed that they are following the designated health protocols, it said. "The Embassy of India in Tokyo has reached out to the Indian nationals through emails and telephone calls and explained to them about the health and safety regulations of Japanese authorities and have requested for cooperation," the statement said. In a video recorded from the ship on Monday, an Indian crew member, Binay Kumar Sarkar, appealed to the Indian government and the UN to segregate the Indians on board on urgent basis. "None of them have been checked (for coronavirus)," Sarkar, a chef from Bengal, said in Hindi. He was flanked by five of his Indians colleagues who were wearing masks. "Please somehow save us as soon as possible. What's the point if something happens (to us)...I want to request the government of India and Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi-ji, please segregate us and bring us back home safely," he said. China coronavirus: Record 242 new deaths, nearly 15,000 fresh cases report in Hubei in 1 day China's Hubei province, the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus, has reported a record 242 new fatalities and nearly 15,000 fresh cases in a single day, local health officials announced on Thursday, the fastest rise in the daily count since the virus outbreak was first identified in December. The hard-hit Hubei province for which Wuhan is the provincial capital has reported 14,840 new coronavirus cases, including 13,332 clinically diagnosed cases on Wednesday the local Health Commission said. The province reported 242 new deaths on Wednesday from the infection on the same day, double than Tuesday taking the total death toll to 1,310 so far, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. With this the total confirmed cases in the province has jumped to 48,206, raising concerns over the faster pace with which the virus is spreading in the province. (with inputs from PTI)