Cruise Ship Horror: Confirmed And Potential Coronavirus Cases On 4 Different Ships Cause A Frenzy Of Panic All Over The Globe

If the coronavirus is not a serious threat, why are countries all over the world acting so crazy all of a sudden?  Perhaps someday we will look back and laugh about how this coronavirus outbreak caused so much hysteria, but right now government officials around the globe are certainly acting as if we were right in the middle of a really bad science fiction movie.  Are they just being overly cautious, or is this virus actually more dangerous than we are being told?  As I discussed yesterday, one AI-powered simulation is projecting that this virus could kill 52 million people.  Even if that projection is off by 95 percent, it would still make sense for countries to do all that they can to keep infected people from crossing their borders.

So that may help to explain why there is such a frenzy of panic about confirmed and potential cases aboard cruise ships right now.  For example, a cruise ship named The Diamond Princess is anchored off the coast of Yokohama, Japan at this moment.  There are 2,666 passengers and 1,045 crew members on board, and the ship has been placed under strict quarantine since Tuesday.

And they are being quarantined for good reason.  At this point, the number of confirmed cases on board the ship has now risen to 61

At least 61 passengers — including 11 Americans — aboard a cruise ship in Japan have been infected with the coronavirus. The number of cases on the ship tripled overnight from 20 to 61, CNN’s Will Ripley reports.

Ripley reports that passengers aboard the ship have to stay inside 23 hours a day. They are allowed outside for less than an hour under close supervision, and they have to stand 3 feet away from each other and wear masks.

The quarantine of the ship is scheduled to last for 11 more days.

There are 428 Americans on board, and when the quarantine is over they will want to come home.

But will it be safe from them to do so?

In an interview with Fox News over Skype, two of the American passengers were pleading for help from President Trump

‘We are kind of worried because we’ve still got two weeks on here assuming that works out in our favor and we still have to get onto American soil,’ passenger Gaetano Cerullo explained to Fox News over Skype from their cabin on board. ‘And, if Donald Trump could help us in any way…’

‘We need help. We are in a desperate, desperate state,’ his wife Milena Basso pleaded. ‘We’re American citizens and we just want to get home.’

Meanwhile, Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas is currently docked in Bayonne, New Jersey.  Of the 27 passengers that had “recently traveled from mainland China”, four were taken off the ship to a nearby hospital

More than two dozen passengers on a cruise ship docked near New York City have been tested for the new coronavirus, state officials said Friday, and four have been hospitalized.

Personnel from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention boarded the ship to test 27 passengers “who recently traveled from mainland China,” New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said Friday.

We haven’t been told if any of those passengers are infected or not, but what we do know is that the emergency workers that took them to the hospital were not wearing masks, and considering how easily this virus spreads that is quite alarming.

A third cruise ship that is making headlines doesn’t have anywhere to dock because it has been turned away from four different countries.

The MS Westerdam is operated by Holland America, and it left Hong Kong on February 1st carrying 802 crew members and 1,455 passengers.

The crew insists that there are no coronavirus cases on board at all, but they are being turned away at port after port

More than 2,000 people are marooned at sea after four countries denied entry to a cruise ship over coronavirus fears – despite the crew’s insistence that there are no virus cases on board.

Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines and the US territory of Guam have all denied permission for the MS Westerdam to dock.

Japanese leader Shinzo Abe yesterday said his country would not allow foreign passengers to disembark, saying there were suspected virus patients on board.

Is this a case of needless hysteria, or is the crew not being entirely honest with authorities?

According to CNBC, a fourth cruise ship that is currently docked in Hong Kong is being quarantined after “several crew members reported symptoms” that are associated with the coronavirus…

And almost 2,000 tourists are being held on a cruise ship operated by Genting’s Dream Cruises in Hong Kong and being tested for the coronavirus after several crew members reported symptoms associated with the illness.

Things are getting crazy out there, and I have a feeling that they are only going to get crazier as this year rolls along.

Stock prices had been doing relatively well this week, but concern about the coronavirus pushed the Dow Jones Industrial Average down more than 270 points on Friday…

Stocks fell on Friday as worries over the coronavirus’ impact on the Chinese economy outweighed the release of stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 277.26 points lower, or nearly 1%, to 29,102.51. The S&P 500 dipped 0.5% to 3,327.71. The Nasdaq Composite also slid 0.5% to close at 9,520.51.

If this coronavirus outbreak fizzles out, and that is what I am still hoping, then the impact of this crisis is not going to weigh too heavily on Wall Street.

But if the number of cases worldwide soars into the millions, it is going to be absolutely devastating for stock prices.

We will wait and see what happens.  Here in the U.S. authorities continue to insist that we don’t have very much to be concerned about, but at the same time the WHO is warning of “a chronic shortage of gowns, masks, gloves and other protective equipment” around the world…

The world is facing a chronic shortage of gowns, masks, gloves and other protective equipment in the fight against a spreading coronavirus epidemic, World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Friday.

The U.N. agency has been sending testing kits, masks, gloves, respirators and gowns to every region, Tedros told the WHO Executive Board in Geneva.

Will lots of “testing kits, masks, gloves, respirators and gowns” soon be needed in every part of the globe?

Is there something they aren’t telling us?

Unfortunately, there is probably quite a bit that they aren’t telling us.

In any crisis, one of the top goals for authorities is to keep the public “calm”, but that comes at a great cost.

Right now most people are not doing anything to get prepared for a potential pandemic, and that could have very serious consequences down the road.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.