In early March, 305 people decided to board the cruise ship Zaandam for a cruise to Asia and back. While this might have struck most of us as foolhardy, these passengers had been reassured by the Vice President himself. From The South Florida Sun Sentinal:
On the day it left port, Robert Redfield, the director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was in Broward County, encouraging people to go about their lives and not be saddled by fears of the virus. Vice President Mike Pence took it step further when he said people should continue to cruise. In no time, President Donald Trump would take to Twitter to say the virus was a ploy between the news media and the Democratic Party. (emphasis mine)
And I’m sure you can guess what happen. The article continues:
The Zaandam now is awash in sickness and death, as is much of the world in the grips of this coronavirus pandemic. Things began to spiral horribly out of control seven days into the trip.
At this point there are 4 dead and 138 sick. No port in the Pacific will let them land, and they can’t get back to Florida because the Panama Canal Authority won't let them pass while there are any infected people on board. And if they do make it back to Florida it is not clear what kind of reception they will get:
Some Broward County officials triggered apprehension at the thought of overwhelming local hospitals with sick passengers and crew members.
And remember, Pence is the one who is supposed to be in charge of the pandemic response.
Update: cattychaos mentions in a comment below that the Panama Canal Authority has agreed to let the Zaandam through the canal.
Update #2 — ayjaymay corrects me: It was a trip to South America, not Asia.
And check out this front page story reporting that 10000 people are currently stranded on cruise ships worldwide.
