Japan’s health ministry says about 60 more people on a quarantined cruise ship have tested positive for a new virus.
Health ministry officials said Monday they are double-checking the results and could not immediately release the exact figure. They said further details are underway.
Health officials previously said 70 people had the virus among the 3,711 passengers and crew on the Diamond Princess, quarantined in the port of Yokohama, near Tokyo.
More than 3,600 people are still in a 14-day quarantine on board the ship.
Over the weekend, Japan’s health minister said his government was considering testing all of the more than 3,600 crew and passengers of the quarantined cruise ship Diamond Princess before allowing them to disembark.
Five of the six new cases announced Sunday aboard the ship are crew assigned to restaurants, bars or housekeeping, according to the minister, Katsunobu Kato. Testing every person aboard would require them all to remain on the ship until results are available.
Japanese health authorities are scrambling to deliver medicine requested by more than 600 passengers.
“We are doing the utmost to keep everyone in good health,” Kato said.
