MANILA, Philippines – No Filipino was among the 10 new confirmed 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) patients aboard a cruise ship currently docked in Yokohama, Japan, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Thursday.
According to DFA, the Filipino seafarer working for the Diamond Princess cruise ship remains to be the only Filipino who tested positive for the 2019-nCoV) out of the 538 Filipinos inside the said sea craft.
“As of 11 a.m. on 06 February 2020, another group of 10 people on board the Diamond Princess tested positive for 2019 novel coronavirus Acute Respiratory Disease (2019-nCoV ARD),” DFA said in a statement.
“Aside from the first reported case yesterday, no other Filipinos onboard have tested positive for the virus at this time,” they added.
The Filipino worker was part of the first 10 persons inside the Diamond Princess cruise ship who tested positive. All 10 have been undergoing treatment while the whole vessel was quarantined for 14 days to prevent the spread of the virus.
READ: Filipino crew member of Japan cruise ship tests positive for nCoV
DFA said that the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo is currently working with Japanese authorities in providing assistance to the Filipinos inside the cruise ship.
“The assistance provided includes the provision of food, medicine, masks, and other supplies,” DFA explained.
“The Embassy also provided its Assistance-to-Nationals hotline phone number and email, so Filipinos on the ship will be able to contact the Embassy directly with their concerns and requests,” they added.
As of Thursday, over 28,000 persons have been infected with the 2019-nCoV, which originated from Wuhan in China. In the Philippines, the Department of Health (DOH) announced three confirmed cases — one is undergoing treatment, one is already out of the country, and one already dead.
At least 565 have been confirmed dead — including the Chinese national in the Philippines. Latest numbers from DOH showed that patients under investigation for showing symptoms of the 2019-nCoV have reached 178.
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READ: DOH: Patients checked for nCoV reach 178 in PH