Scientology cruise ship quarantined over confirmed case of measles

Scientology cruise ship quarantined over measles outbreak as
300 passengers on ‘religious retreat’ are ordered to stay on
board
St Lucia’s chief medical officer said the action was taken after a
case of measles was diagnosed on board

A SCIENTOLOGY cruise ship has been quarantined over a worrying
measles outbreak with all 300 passengers on a “religious retreat”
ordered to stay on board.

The Caribbean nation of St Lucia slapped the quarantine order on
the ship, barring any passengers or crew from leaving the boat
while in port.

The island’s chief medical officer said the action was taken as
a precaution after a case of measles was diagnosed on board.

Dr Merlene Frederick-James said in a video statement posted to
YouTube on Tuesday that the St. Lucia Ministry of Health ordered
the restriction after conferring with the Pan American Health
Organisation and others about the risk of exposure to
islanders.

The ministry learned of the confirmed measles case from “two
reputable sources,” and in light of current measles outbreaks in
the United States and the highly infectious nature of the disease
“we thought it prudent that we quarantine the ship,”
Frederick-James said.

She gave no information about the ship or its origins.

NBC News, citing a St. Lucia Coast Guard sergeant, reported the
boat in question is named Freewinds, which is the name of a
440-foot vessel owned and operated by the Church of
Scientology.

The international vessel-monitoring website MarineTraffic.com
also showed that a Panamanian-flagged passenger ship identified as
SMV Freewinds docked in port near the St. Lucia capital of
Castries. The website indicated the ship was headed next to the
island of Dominica.

The Church of Scientology website describes the Tradewinds as a
floating “religious retreat ministering the most advanced level of
spiritual counseling in the Scientology religion.” It says it’s
home port is Curacao.

Church officials did not immediately respond to efforts by
Reuters seeking comment on the situation.

NBC News reported that nearly 300 passengers and crew were
aboard the vessel, with one female crew member diagnosed with
measles.

The cruise ship quarantine comes as the number of measles cases
in the United States has reached a 25-year peak with more than 700
people diagnosed as of this week, part of an international
resurgence in the disease.

Public health officials blame declining vaccination rates in
some communities driven by misinformation about inoculation that
has left those populations vulnerable to rapid spread of infection
among those with no immunity to the virus.

Health authorities in Los Angeles last month ordered quarantines
on two university campuses after each one had reported at least one
confirmed case.

The vast majority of U.S. cases have occurred in children who
have not received the three-way vaccines against measles, mumps and
rubella (MMR), which confers immunity to the disease, officials
said.

Measles is spread through casual contact with the virus, which
can remain infectious in the air of an enclosed space for up to two
hours after it is breathed out by someone carrying the disease.

The rate of transmission from an infected person to another
person nearby who lacks immunity is about 90 percent, and an
infected person can be contagious for four days before showing
signs of the disease. (Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles;
editing by Darren Schuettler)

Culled from .thesun.co.uk

Subscribe ToNairalaw News!