Cruising choices with an active Pandemic

[moa999]

Wednesday was the day they were supposed to be allowed off the ship anyway. Another 14 days in quarantine

According to the News tonight that's been confirmed by Japanese authorities.

I'd think theres a real risk that people just don't take the flight, particularly after the disaster of the US flight where positive test results came back for a number of passengers mid flight.

Not clear what the Aus Govts position is if you don't return on the quarantine flight

 

[Pushka]

I was not following David Abel , but sad to see both he and his wife test positive and schlepped off to a hostel with no social media access … hmmm…..

Given his issues this action seems highly unusual for a positive person with significant health issues. If I were his family I’d be asking lots of questions right now.

 

[Tropic]

Don't do facebook but was reading elsewhere the guy claims to be a "world class celebrity celebrant" ? Also that he or his son ? was bagging out the UK government about not helping get them off the boat but hadn't responded to the government's emails regarding evacuation...now he's claiming not to have the virus despite testing positive with his wife and saying it's a conspiracy to shut him up.... Hope he and his wife don't develop severe symptoms - that would be sad

 

[amaroo]

That family locked up in a internal bunk bed cabin deserve an award. From what I've seen no whinging, just a stiff upper lip attitude. Well done! Even when faced with another 14 days of misery.

Also, plenty of happy people interviewed after being released from CI - no whinging, just plenty of thanks to the Aus Gov for assisting them. Pity I had to see that on a commercial network, and not on that Australian taxpayer funded disappointment

 

[Pushka]

Don't do facebook but was reading elsewhere the guy claims to be a "world class celebrity celebrant" and was loving his 15 min of famewas actually chasing media interviews? Also that he or his son ? was bagging out the UK government about not helping get them off the boat but hadn't responded to the government's emails regarding evacuation...now he's claiming not to have the virus despite testing positive with his wife and saying it's a conspiracy to shut him up.... Hope he and his wife don't develop severe symptoms - that would be sad

The emails from the UK government were initially just determining interest. They only decided to do the lift later today and is now too late for them as they’ve now tested positive. If it’s important enough to force people off the ship and stay in Japan for god knows how long then they should have been taken to hospital. I’d be wanting to see the test results and I’m betting drron would be insisting on that.
He did become a bit of a media hound but it started as a FB update to his family and word spread.

 

[Tropic]

Australian taxpayer funded disappointment
.

And I thought Ita would sort them out ...

 

[Anna]

Not clear what the Aus Govts position is if you don't return on the quarantine flight

Scotty from marketing is fond of saying they won't be allowed into the country before 4 March. Whether it's legal to deny access to the country to Australian citizens is an interesting question. The NT quarantine in the mining camp may be being achieved under 'national security' laws not health laws*. In which case, I think we all have a lot to be afraid of if they can call anything they like 'national security' and deprive people of their liberty on flimsy excuses like "we're not entirely convinced" that you might not be ill, despite testing negative and passing a health exam before we even let you on the QF evacuation flight.

*At least not under NT Public and Environmental Health Act which would require a public health emergency to be declared before it would be legal to detain anyone. As of yesterday, no such emergency had been declared in NT. IMO it would be a farce to say there was a public health emergency in NT even when the pax arrive.

 

[Pushka]

In reality though they have been exposed to coronavirus for an extended period of time. Well over four weeks from the first positive. With another 88 yesterday and over 500 testing positive from 4000. Should the law override entirely reasonable common sense? If so, then it’s broke.

 

[SydneySwan]

Aren’t pax having to ‘voluntarily’ agree to the quarantine in order to board the evacuation flights? So I doubt any law comes into it. Agree with general sentiment though - don’t trust Scumo an inch and fearful of him using what is happening now as some sort of precedent to our detriment.

 

[Pushka]

Aren’t pax having to ‘voluntarily’ agree to the quarantine in order to board the evacuation flights? So I doubt any law comes into it. Agree with general sentiment though - don’t trust Scumo an inch and fearful of him using what is happening now as some sort of precedent to our detriment.

Why bring politics into this? I’d expect any flavour Government to do the same. Canada is doing likewise as are the other evac countries I believe.

 

[Pushka]

An interesting watch from a specialist in infection control who entered the ship

Source. Cruise Critic.
Prof. Iwata has over 100 peer reviewed journal publications to his name, was quoted as recently as 5 days ago to the Japanese press as a subject matter expert and presented his take on why China might reasonably change their reporting methodology for COVID-19 numbers. His earlier work goes back over 2 decades and includes papers like "Personal protective equipment and improving compliance among healthcare workers in high-risk settings (2016)".

His latest paper that is pending publication is about what happens when a lone traveler enters a new community of 1000 uninfected individuals; in the best case simulation of his model, nothing the virus dies out, in the worst case simulation within 100 days 997 out of 1000 have been infected (but nearly all recover). So it seems very plausible he wanted to visit this ship to better understand what was going on, and then saw the heart breaking situation that he has now likely risked his career over and appears to be sitting at home self-quarantined in fear of the virus and its impact.

Sources:

• Youtube upload identity
• Kobe University faculty list Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine / School of Medicine (includes his professional email in case you want to thank/support him)
• PubMed database and ResearchGate Iwata Kentaro
• "The balance sheet of the Covid-19 explodes in China after a change of calculation, heads fall" interview with Kentaro Iwata February 13, 2020

 

[get me outta here]

Yes, it was quite moving to see, on the ABC.

That family locked up in a internal bunk bed cabin deserve an award. From what I've seen no whinging, just a stiff upper lip attitude. Well done! Even when faced with another 14 days of misery.

Also, plenty of happy people interviewed after being released from CI - no whinging, just plenty of thanks to the Aus Gov for assisting them. Pity I had to see that on a commercial network, and not on that Australian taxpayer funded disappointment

 

[Anna]

In reality though they have been exposed to coronavirus for an extended period of time.

Not sure I agree with that analysis Pushka. They were exposed to a risk of coronavirus for up to 2 weeks during the cruise and then they have been in quarantine for 2 weeks. If they have been exposed to coronavirus while in quarantine then that just shows that mass quarantine does not work, and it makes even less sense for the government to put them in another 2 weeks mandatory detention in a mass quarantine situation.

 

[Pushka]

Not sure I agree with that analysis Pushka. They were exposed to a risk of coronavirus for up to 2 weeks during the cruise and then they have been in quarantine for 2 weeks. If they have been exposed to coronavirus while in quarantine then that just shows that mass quarantine does not work, and it makes even less sense for the government to put them in another 2 weeks mandatory detention in a mass quarantine situation.

Quarantine versus Isolation.
Perhaps the difference is isolation, which is what the Princess Diamond was put into, and Quarantine, which is what will happen on arrival. Isolation limits the risk of transmission and in this case, that didn’t happen to the extent that it needed to do. The YouTube video describes many basic lapses. The Princess Diamond was put into isolation - from Japan. Quarantine is much more rigorous and will stop the transmission of the virus once the incubation period is over. That must happen now.

 

[Pushka]

And it gets worse for those US citizens who didn’t board that flight.

 

[moa999]

And it gets worse for those US citizens who didn’t board that flight.

I think that was to be expected (and i'd think Australia will do the same).
But think many would prefer to self isolate in Japan or elsewhere, than be sent to an old mining camp on the outskirts of Darwin o whatever the US is doing

 

[Tropic]

Scotty from marketing

Oh you mean the Prime Minister...

quarantine in the mining camp may

old mining camp on the outskirts of Darwin

Actually it's not a mining camp, its the (very well equipped, modern) accommodation centre built to house workers for the Impex Gas Plant....but lets not worry about the facts....

 

[Anna]

You can blame the ABC - The Howard Springs former mining camp where the passengers will be quarantined has been used to keep Australians who were evacuated from Wuhan, where the coronavirus originated - 'I don't know when it will be my turn': Life under quarantine on the Diamond Princess

And it's Inpex, not Impex, but let's not worry about the facts.

 

[moa999]

Plant....but lets not worry about the facts

Gas plant accomodation.. mining accomodation.
Same same.

Purpose built to house a long hours shift based workforce that's typically male 20-50.

Suspect the quality of the rooms will be a step-down from a cruise ship.

While it will likely have better recreation facilities than Christmas Island, those isolated citizens won't be able to use much of them due to fear of further spread if any of them comes down with the virus

 

[Pushka]

I think that was to be expected (and i'd think Australia will do the same).
But think many would prefer to self isolate in Japan or elsewhere, than be sent to an old mining camp on the outskirts of Darwin o whatever the US is doing

Totally agree but while its yet to be announced, with the Olympics around the corner I cannot imagine Japan letting these people roam at will for 14 days either.