Washington » The odyssey of the “Zaandam” cruise ship affected by the corona virus is over. The ship moored in Fort Lauderdale Harbor on Thursday. The Mayor of Fort Lauderdale had previously informed of this. The coastguard and various authorities had agreed that the “Zaandam” and its sister ship “Rotterdam” would be given permission to moor in Fort Lauderdale, the city’s mayor Dean Trantalis wrote on Twitter.
Germans now on “Rotterdam”
There were originally 79 Germans on the “Zaandam” – most have now switched to the sister ship “Rotterdam”. The shipping company asked on Wednesday that the ships are allowed to moor in Fort Lauderdale and called for “compassion”.
Mayor Trantalis said that various protective measures had been agreed so that infected people would not come into contact with the local population. The majority of the passengers, who are not ill and have no symptoms, should be brought directly to airplanes by bus to leave Fort Lauderdale. A small group of seriously ill passengers should be taken to local hospitals. Those with mild illnesses or symptoms should remain in quarantine on board.
Previously, US President Donald Trump had promised to help the passengers of the Zaandam ”and sister ship“ Rotterdam ”in the Corona crisis. “From a humanitarian perspective, we have no choice,” Trump said at the White House on Wednesday evening (local time). “People die.” He added, “We have to do something. And the governor (from Florida, Ron DeSantis) knows that too. ”The“ Zaandam ”and the“ Rotterdam ”were on their way to Florida, but have so far had no permission to dock at the destination port in Fort Lauderdale in the south of the state.
Governor blocks himself
DeSantis initially prevented the ships from calling into Florida. He argued that medical resources in the region also affected by the virus should be kept available for the local population.
Trump said that medical teams would definitely be sent to the ships. They are also in talks with the Canadian and UK authorities to bring their citizens home. The US president said many passengers were Americans. “But we have to help people. They are in big trouble – no matter where they come from. ”
DeSantis told Fox News after a phone call to Trump on Wednesday that it had originally been informed that only foreigners with no connection to Florida were on board. But it turned out that there were also Americans on board – and among them “30 or 40” people from Florida. “Once we found out that Americans, and especially Florida people, are on board, we looked for a way to make it work.”
The shipping company did not break down any measures for the crew members with symptoms. According to them, 442 passengers and 603 crew members are on the “Zaandam”, 808 passengers and 583 crew members are on the “Rotterdam”. TEH
