One of the largest cruise ships sailing in the Mediterranean became the latest to be hit by COVID amid the global surge in cases.
MSC Cruises confirmed a total of 45 COVID-positive passengers had disembarked from MSC Grandiosa ship in Port Genoa (Milan) on Monday, January 3, fewer than 1% of those onboard.
The cruise ship was carrying 4,813 passengers and crew on a roundtrip from Port Civitavecchia-Rome with scheduled calls in Valletta Malta and Barcelona Spain over New Year's Eve.
All MSC Cruises crew and passengers over the age of 12 are required to be fully vaccinated. All travelers aged 2+ must submit a pre-departure negative PCR test.
MSC Cruises denied Italian media reports of a higher number of COVID-positive cases onboard. The line said the identification/removal of the sick travelers demonstrated that its health & safety protocol, which also includes face masks wearing in indoor public areas, was working.
Positive guests and their close contacts were "immediately isolated in cabins with balconies."
In a statement, MSC said that in line with the protocol, they had organized "transportation back home, all done in alignment with the relevant health and other authorities."
Crew onboard Grandiosa were said to have been tested every 2 days, while guests were tested at the beginning and in the middle of the cruise. Passengers were also set to be tested at the end of the journey.
Grandiosa continued her voyage following the disembarkation and is scheduled to return to Civitavecchia-Rome on Tuesday, January 4.
For more MSC Grandiosa incidents and accidents see the ship's CruiseMinus page.