Coronavirus hits UK for third time: 61 test positive on Japanese cruise ship

The Department for Health issued a statement from Professor Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England: “A further patient has tested positive for coronavirus bringing the total number of cases in the UK to three. The individual did not acquire this in the UK.

“The patient is being transferred to a specialist NHS centre, and we are using robust infection control measures to prevent any possible further spread of the virus.

“The NHS is well prepared to manage these cases and we are now working quickly to identify any contacts the patient has had.”

In Japan 61 people have tested positive for the virus on a cruise ship in Yokohama, Japan. The ship has now been quarantined and officials have screened 273 passengers who could have been exposed, while thousands of passengers have been confined to cabins. 

The 61 cases came from a sample of 273 people who had been tested because they were either showing symptoms or had been in close contact with those who did, according to the health ministry.

Experts say the virus can be transmitted via droplets from an infected person exhaling, coughing or sneezing, and can also spread via contaminated surfaces.