Cruise ship with sick passengers holding off coast of California for testing

In this photo provided by Michele Smith, a California Air National Guard helicopter delivering virus testing kits lowers crew down to the Grand Princess cruise ship Thursday, March 5, 2020, off the California coast. Scrambling to keep the coronavirus at bay, officials ordered a cruise ship with about 3,500 people aboard to hold off the California coast Thursday until passengers and crew could be tested, after a traveler from its previous voyage died and at least one other became infected. Princess Cruises says fewer than 100 of those aboard have been identified for testing. (Michele Smith via AP) less In this photo provided by Michele Smith, a California Air National Guard helicopter delivering virus testing kits lowers crew down to the Grand Princess cruise ship Thursday, March 5, 2020, off the California ... more Photo: Michele Smith/AP Photo: Michele Smith/AP Image 1 of / 23 Caption Close Cruise ship with sick passengers holding off coast of California for testing 1 / 23 Back to Gallery

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A cruise ship is being held off the coast of Central California Thursday morning to test passengers for the coronavirus, after a 71-year-old passenger from a previous voyage died from the illness and at least one other became infected. The ship is banned from docking in San Francisco or other ports until passengers have been assessed.

A dozen crew members and 11 passengers aboard the Grand Princess had symptoms that could be coronavirus, flu or the common cold, health officials said. The ship is carrying about 2,500 people and half are from California.

The state is using U.S. Coast Guard helicopters to fly about 100 COVID-19 testing kits out to the ship, which won't be allowed to dock until the test results are completed, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday.

The tests will be conducted at an East Bay laboratory in Richmond, said Newsom.

“The ship will not come on shore until we appropriately assess the passengers,” Newsom said.

Princess Cruise said in a statement, "Out of an abundance of caution, all guests who have been identified for testing have been asked to remain in their staterooms. We will continue to proceed under the guidance of the U.S. CDC and local authorities.

The deceased 71-year-old patient had underlying health conditions and died at a hospital in Roseville in Placer County, near Sacramento. He may have contracted the infection while on the Grand Princess in February when it traveled round-trip from San Francisco to Mexico last month, authorities said.

Another passenger who contracted the COVID-19 virus was in stable condition at a hospital in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco.

The passenger contingent includes 62 guests who were on the cruise to Mexico but stayed aboard the Grand Princess for a current cruise to Hawaii. Those passengers were told to stay in their staterooms until cleared by medical staff, according to a message to guests Wednesday from Dr. Grant Tarling, chief medical officer for Princess Cruises.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control is working with California authorities to contact other passengers from the previous trip, CDC Director Robert Redfield said Wednesday at a White House briefing.

"We’re at the very beginning of that, looking at the manifest to make sure that we understand who has gotten off the cruise and where they got off the cruise,” Redfield said.

The cruise company also operates the Diamond Princess, which docked in Japan in January. Dozens of passengers contracted the virus. Hundreds of passengers were flown to U.S. military bases to be quarantined until tests cleared them.

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The announcement came as California became the third U.S. state to declare a state of emergency over the virus, after Washington and Florida.

Newsom said California is particularly focused on senior centers, nursing homes and other care facilities where people live together in light of the outbreak in Washington state that has already killed 10 there.

Six new California cases were confirmed, including a medical screener at Los Angeles International Airport who was said to have mild symptoms and was under quarantine at home.

It was unclear if the screener contracted the virus through their work at the airport or from so-called community transmission, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. No travelers screened at the Los Angeles airport have tested positive for the virus.

California has had 53 confirmed cases of coronavirus. While most people have shown mild symptoms, such as fever and a cough, health officials on Wednesday confirmed that California had the first fatal case in the U.S.

In all, more than 94,000 people have contracted the virus worldwide, according to the World Health Organization, with more than 3,200 deaths. WHO reports that the COVID-19 virus is more fatal than the common flu.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Amy Graff is a digital editor with SFGATE. Email her: agraff@sfgate.com.

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