Coronavirus Cases on Cruise Ship off Japan Jump to 61

Tokyo, Feb. 7 (Jiji Press)--The number of confirmed infection cases of the new coronavirus on a cruise ship quarantined off Japan has jumped by 41 to 61, the health ministry said Friday. Of the 61, 28 are Japanese nationals, according to the ministry. The total excludes a Hong Kong man who tested positive for the virus originating in China after recently disembarking from the Diamond Princess cruise ship. The ministry has completed virus checks on samples collected from 273 people on the ship, including those with fever or other symptoms. Among the 10 people who left the ship for treatment after their infections were confirmed Wednesday, one with a chronic disease is in serious condition, according to the ministry. The newly confirmed 41 patients are all passengers, the ministry said, adding that none of them are in serious condition. Of the new patients, 21 are Japanese nationals, including one in her 20s, two women in their 50s, a man and two women in their 60s, and seven men and six women in their 70s. The remaining two are a man and a woman in their 80s. The other 20 are eight Americans, five Canadians, five Australians, one Argentine and one Briton. The 41 people were taken to medical institutions in Tokyo, Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa and Shizuoka prefectures on Friday. Some 3,600 passengers and crew members are still kept inside the ship. It is likely they have to stay on until Feb. 19 or later. The ministry plans to conduct virus checks on those on the ship who are elderly or have a chronic illness even if they are exhibiting no symptoms. "We'd like to fully analyze how the virus spread from those who had close contact with the Hong Kong man," health minister Katsunobu Kato told a news conference. END