First batch of passengers from Japan's cruise ship arrive in Hong Kong

Over 100 Hong Kong citizens who were quarantined on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan for over two weeks arrived on the morning of February 20 in the Asian financial hub where they will face further quarantine for a period of 14 days. The 106 passengers were part of a first batch who arrived on a government arranged chartered Cathay Pacific aircraft, as per the reports. The authorities said out of 364 Hong Kong residents, 55 of them aboard the ship were infected with the novel coronavirus. They will remain in Japan along with 33 other citizens who have been in close contact with them. 

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79 more confirmed cases 

The total number of infected onboard the quarantined cruise ship Diamond Princess has risen to 621 after Japan recently announced 79 more confirmed cases on the ship. According to reports, Japan's health ministry was carrying out tests on passengers and crews that are quarantined onboard the ship. The Diamond Princess is currently docked in Yokohoma, a port city close to Tokyo and the passengers on the cruise ship began leaving after being tested negative for the coronavirus. 

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According to reports, around 500 passengers were allowed to leave the ship after the 14-day quarantine period came to an end. The passengers leaving the ship also received an official certificate stating that the concerned individuals did not pose any threat and had tested negative for the infection of the virus. As per reports, a few countries were also not happy with the quarantine process onboard the Diamond Princess and started bringing back their citizens on board chartered planes. 

The death toll for the novel Coronavirus hit 2129 in mainland China. As per the Chinese state health committee, the number of confirmed cases has gone up by 75, 754. According to the National Health Commission, 1,749 new cases of novel coronavirus infection have been confirmed.

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