Barbadian authorities are seeking to determine a position on an Italian cruise ship which has arrived in Barbados’ territorial waters having been turned away from both Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis.
The Costa Magica was banned from docking in Tobago over fear that some of its passengers may have been exposed to the coronavirus (covid19).  Italy has reported several cases of the virus and Barbados has in place a requirement that visitors arriving from that country be subject to a fourteen day quarantine.
On Wednesday authorities in St Kitts allowed the Costa Magica to dock there but passengers onboard were not allowed to disembark. The vessel had arrived in St. Kitts from Antigua, its previous port of call.
The cruise ship has a capacity to accommodate about 4 thousand passengers and one thousand crew members. Its passengers mostly come from France, Italy, Guadeloupe and Martinique.
A Barbadian official tells Starcom Network News the ship was not due to arrive here until next week but came early and is now in Barbados’ territorial waters.
The official said they were awaiting a determination by port health officials based on the information about those on board to determine how the vessel and its passengers will be handled.