With its dazzling white hull emblazoned with red crosses, the Comfort appeared as a beacon of hope when it sailed into New York Harbor last week. But it has since become a stark symbol of the halting and at times ham-handed efforts to combat a novel contagion that continues to confound medical science.

The ship arrived with a list of restrictions on patients that some hospital officials complained were so onerous that only healthy people would be allowed on board. When only a handful of patients could be transferred to the ship, the Defense Department eased those restrictions.

All along, the goal was to prevent the virus from coming on board. In the end, it did anyway, in a testament to the virus’s perniciousness.

Five patients who were originally transferred to the Comfort after testing negative for the virus also eventually developed symptoms. Additional tests confirmed they had the disease.

Now, patients suffering most acutely from Covid-19, along with others in need of urgent care, are being transferred to the ship, while those less severely affected will remain at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, another spillover site operated by the Department of Defense in Manhattan. All patients must give consent before being transferred to the Defense Department run facilities.

After the reconfiguration to accept Covid patients, the ship will have 500 beds, plus an additional 100 intensive care unit beds equipped with ventilators, Vice Adm. Andrew Lewis, the commander of U.S. Second Fleet, said at a briefing with reporters on Tuesday.

The Javits Center also has 42 ventilators and is expecting another 48 to come online in the coming days, said Maj. Gen. William A. Hall, who is overseeing operations there.