GEORGE TOWN (Bernama): A total of 1,209 Chinese nationals who entered Penang on a cruise ship through the Swettenham Jetty here were confirmed free of the novel coronavirus.

Penang Immigration director Muhamad Husni Mahmud said the Chinese nationals arrived at the jetty at 6.15am Sunday (Jan 26) on transit while waiting to depart to Phuket, Thailand, at 5pm.

"When they arrived, personnel from the Penang Health Department conducted health examination and screening on the passengers and crew of the cruise ship twice before their documents were checked by the Immigration.

"None of them (tourists from China) was detected or referred by the healthy authority to us (Immigration), meaning there was no suspected carrier of the virus,” he said in a statement.

Muhamad Husni said the cruise ship was from Singapore and stopped at Port Klang, Selangor, before arriving in Penang on transit to Phuket. - Bernama