11 coronavirus cases on vessel arriving at Sillamäe
Of the 21 crew members on the Norwegian cargo ship Yara Nauma, which berthed in the port city of Sillamäe, the second largest commercial port in Estonia, on Monday, August 3, 11 tested positive for coronavirus. Before this, employees of the port had been on board the vessel, but the Health Board (Terviseamet) says that the virus shouldn't spread further because the outbreak was isolated.
Two of the crew are currently in hospital, and the rest are auarantining on board the ship for two weeks,
"They are all on separate decks, and new rounds of testing is being organized for the members that tested negative. Because the team didn't leave the ship, there shouldn't be an outbreak outside of the immediate vicinity," Head of the Eastern Regional Department of the Health Board said.
So far as the Port of Sillamäe is aware, eight port employees talked to the workers on the ship after it berthed. These are all isolated in their homes and waiting to give a coronavirus test. The ship's presence is not disturbing the everyday work at the port, the authority says.
"We isolated the boat. Nobody is going aboard, she is standing in a separate zone, and nobody can get off board either; the rest of the port's work continues. The virus hasn't spread," Urmas Teelahk, Deputy Head of the Port of Sillamäe Security and Internal Control Service, confirmed.
The vessel was carrying a consignment of ammonia from Finland.
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Editor: Roberta Vaino