It's not coronavirus — Costa Smeralda quarantine liftedIt's not coronavirus — Costa Smeralda quarantine lifted

Ship to depart Friday evening

The ship, which had been on lockdown since arriving at the Port of Civitavecchia (Rome) early Thursday, will depart on its next cruise Friday evening. The scheduled call at La Spezia on Friday will be dropped.

Passengers free to disembark

The 1,143 passengers who were to disembark at Civitavecchia were cleared to go at their convenience and given the opportunity to overnight on board. Costa is accommodating the 1,112 passengers who were set to embark at Civitavecchia in local hotels Thursday night. They’ll board Friday, along with passengers from La Spezia.

Costa said it did its best to care for passengers held on the ship and those who had traveled to the terminal to embark.

Late Wednesday night the medical team isolated a 54-year-old Chinese woman with flu-like symptoms, along with her traveling companion. 

Protocols in place

Shoreside health authorities were immediately notified and boarded upon arrival to carry out the required checks.

While Costa acknowledged the inconvenience caused to passengers, it said the procedures in force and its cooperation with the health authorities were ‘effective in managing this situation and were intended to ensure maximum safety for all our guests, crew and the community as a whole.’

The company thanked the health authorities, Coast Guard and the ministries involved for their support and organizational effort.