51��Ƶ

Hundreds of passengers walked off a coronavirus-stricken cruise ship Wednesday after getting the all-clear from the Japanese authorities, but the scene that greeted them as their feet touched solid ground for the first time in weeks suggested that some found the assurances less than reassuring. The taxi drivers who would ordinarily flock to meet arriving cruises were in short supply. There were yellow city buses to ferry passengers to airports and train stations, but their drivers were blocked off by plastic sheeting and tape. Even workers just walking around the terminal wore hazmat suits. (Rich and Yamamitsu, 2/19)

Two elderly coronavirus-infected passengers from a cruise ship moored near Tokyo have died and two more government officials have been infected, the Japanese government said on Thursday, as more passengers disembarked after two weeks' quarantine. More than 620 of the passengers on the Diamond Princess liner have been infected on the ship, which has been quarantined since Feb. 3, initially with about 3,700 people on board. (2/20)

The 87-year-old man and the 84-year-old woman were hospitalized on Feb. 11 and 12, and both had previous health issues, Japanese broadcaster NHK reported, according to the Times. (Coleman, 2/19)

For Japan’s government, it was another stinging critique of its handling of the outbreak, including what critics call sluggish responses in imposing border controls earlier this month and ramping up virus testing. In the past few days, the number of covid-19 cases — even outside the quarantined Diamond Princess — has more than doubled to 79, with many of the new cases not traceable to China. That has forced health officials to acknowledge that “local transmission” has begun and it’s now “impossible” to prevent the virus from spreading. (Denyer, 2/19)

Japanese officials said another 79 cases were confirmed on the Diamond Princess cruise ship Wednesday, bringing the new total to 621. Wednesday marked the end of the two-week quarantine imposed on the vessel when it docked in Japan, and about 500 passengers who tested negative for the virus were allowed off the ship. On Wednesday night, Japanese state media reported that two of the ship's former passengers, both in their 80s, had died. (2/20)

“Unfortunately, cases of infection have emerged, but we have to the extent possible taken appropriate steps to prevent serious cases, including sending infected people to hospital,” health minister Katsunobu Kato said at a parliamentary briefing, according to Reuters. (Bowden, 2/19)

The U.S. government evacuated more than 300 American passengers on two charter flights Monday, including 14 who had tested positive for the new coronavirus. Roughly 60 Americans, some who were hospitalized and others who opted to stay on the ship, remain in Japan. (Winsor, 2/20)

A Japanese professor who gained access to the Diamond Princess cruise ship said in a YouTube video posted Tuesday that he was shocked by the lack of coronavirus infection control measures on board. More than 620 people on the ship have tested positive for novel coronavirus, making the ship, which has been docked off the coast of Japan, the largest center of coronavirus infection outside of China. (Schumaker, 2/19)

Complaining that the “bureaucrats were in charge of everything,” Iwata said he tried to relay his concerns to officials in charge of the quarantine, but he was “removed” from the ship instead. “The ministry of health called, I had to be out,” he told NBC News over the phone from Kobe. So he made the YouTube videos to spread his message, he added. His videos have now been viewed nearly 1.7 million times. Iwata said in the video that he has been in self-imposed quarantine ever since he got off the ship. (Mulligan and Talmazan, 2/19)

The $500 million cruise liner that became an incubator for the novel coronavirus will resume service again soon with its next group of holidaymakers, according to its operator, though only after a thorough cleaning. At its dock near Tokyo, the Diamond Princess still houses some passengers and crew under quarantine for the virus, two weeks after their voyage was scheduled to have ended. (Gale, 2/20)