17:30

Four people have died on a cruise ship stranded off the coast of Panama amid a Covid-19 outbreak on board, the boat’s owners have confirmed.

A boat-to-boat rescue operation is under way near the entrance to the Panama canal to help healthy passengers off the Zaandam cruise liner, where two people have tested positive for the disease and another 138 have influenza-like symptoms.

Holland America Line, which owns the cruise ship, confirmed that four elderly passengers had died onboard. It is not clear whether they died after catching Covid-19.

All 1,243 guests have been asked to self isolate while a boat-to-boat operation to move healthy passengers to another ship, the Rotterdam, takes place off the coast of Panama. Guests over the age of 70 are being given priority, the company confirmed.

On Friday, Ricaurte Vásquez, the administrator for the Panama canal, told local media that the Zaandam would be put into quarantine if testing confirmed a Covid-19 outbreak and said the cruise ship would not be allowed through the canal while positive cases were on board, following an order from the ministry of health.

The Panamanian Maritime Authority said it was supervising the rescue operation, adding that nobody on board would be allowed to disembark in the Central American country.

Autoridad Marítima de Panamá (@AMP_Panama) Supervisamos la operación barco a barco, del Crucero Rotterdam, procedente de San Diego, California, hacia el Crucero Zaandam. Esta operación se ha llevado a cabo, a más de 8 millas de la ciudad, y ninguna persona desembarcará en nuestro país. #ProtégetePanamá pic.twitter.com/f1i7mke5tN

In a statement, Holland America Line said: “Yesterday a number of patients with respiratory symptoms were tested for Covid-19 and two individuals tested positive. Out of an abundance of caution, on March 22 when Zaandam first saw a number of guests reporting to the medical center with influenza-like illness symptoms, we took immediate protective measures, including asking all guests to self-isolate in their staterooms and implementing all other appropriate precautions that have been developed in coordination with the CDC. All guests and crew received face masks yesterday and were provided with instructions on when and how to wear them.

“Currently, 53 guests (4%) and 85 crew (14%) have reported to Zaandam’s medical center with influenza-like illness symptoms. There are 1,243 guests and 586 crew on board ...

“Holland America Line can confirm that four older guests have passed away on Zaandam. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families and we are doing everything we can to support them during this difficult time.”

Holland America Line said those with family members on board should contact for information: +1 (877) 425-2231 or +1 (206) 626-7398.



