Cruise ship with 2 dead passengers, a dozen COVID-19 cases docks in Miami

MIAMI — A Princess Cruises ship carrying at least 12 people who tested positive for COVID-19 coronavirus is scheduled to allow some of its passengers to disembark at Port Miami.

Those passengers on the Coral Princess cruise who are needing "shoreside medical care" will be allowed to disembark first, the company said. People who are considered "fit to fly" will be allowed to leave starting Sunday, with transfer to Miami International Airport for flights home.

The passengers experiencing respiratory symptoms or are recovering from being sick will stay onboard until cleared by a doctor.

Princess Cruises says there are a total of 1,898 people on board, including 1,020 guests and 878 crew members.

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The company reported a "small cluster" of respiratory illness cases and sent 13 test samples to Barbados for COVID-19 testing. Results showed a total of 12 positive results, with seven guests and five crew.

WPLG-TV reports the ship, which was traveling from Chile, was to originally port in Port Everglades but was denied entry by the Coast Guard.

The mayor of Miami-Dade County allowed the ship to dock to "save lives." It originally was carrying five critically ill patients but two died -- one was a South Carolina resident, WPLG said.

The Coral Princess is among several ships, including Holland America's Zaandam, that held passengers with coronavirus or virus-related symptoms. The Coast Guard said it helped to offload more than 1,200 passengers from the Zaandam and its sister ship, the Rotterdam, on Friday.

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