Halfway through a two-week quarantine on a cruise ship docked in Japan, an Ewa Beach couple is trying to stay patient as the number of people aboard the ship who have tested positive for the new coronavirus continues to grow.
Debbie Pagan, 58, and her husband Eric, 64, are among the 3,700 people who were aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship — more than 200 of whom have tested positive for COVID-19.
Japan’s health ministry said Wednesday that the virus was confirmed in an official who participated in the initial quarantine checks the night the ship returned to Yokohama Port near Tokyo on Feb. 3. The quarantine official is being treated in the hospital.
The Pagans have been mostly limited to the inside of their Diamond Princess room since the ship was docked and quarantined in Yokohama.
Debbie Pagan said groups of passengers have been assigned in one-hour periods to leave their rooms, but the couple has generally opted not to. They have offered their time outside to another group whose room does not have a balcony.
“We did go out (Tuesday) night. … I could hear some talking in the hall, and I went out and I looked, and I saw what supposedly looked like one of the quarantine officers talking to somebody about three rooms down, and then that person was leaving, coming toward my room, so I just closed my door,” Pagan said.
Passengers have been instructed to take and monitor their temperatures every day, as symptoms of the virus include a fever, and Pagan said both hers and her husband’s have been stable.
She said they have been doing well on the ship but confinement can present difficulties.
Although they have access to a balcony, the side of the ship Pagan is on faces the dock with no sun and “all the chaos” — dozens of ambulances, military trucks, buses and reporters. She said on Saturday that there were helicopters flying above.
The quarantine is set to end Feb. 19.
She said the captain on Wednesday turned the ship around, giving them access to the sun and a “fresh breeze” for the first time in five days.
“Today (Wednesday) was like a blessing. I feel like I’m on vacation — just for a little bit. Until I realize I can’t walk outside my room,” she said.
She said she can see a few other balconies from her own, and from there she is offered a glimpse of how others are coping with the quarantine.
“I’m on the top floor balcony, and I look down, and I can see a lot of people. You can see them walking in and out, walking sideways, doing squats,” Pagan said. “They’re using water bottles as weights. They’re just trying to keep going.”
Although everyone aboard the Diamond Princess is essentially quarantined from each other as well as those on land, the ship’s balconies also allowed for at least one “misery loves company” moment among some of the passengers.
“One lady, her and her friend were on a balcony below, and she had a cake out on the balcony, and the other friend was videotaping her and singing happy birthday, and we all started joining in and singing happy birthday and clapping. It’s just like camaraderie going on,” she said.
Pagan said initially they were given basic surgical masks but that two or three days ago were given N95 masks, which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said may be appropriate for blocking illnesses like the flu and respiratory diseases. Surgical masks, on the other hand, are loose-fitting and are not meant to block small particles transmitted in the air via coughing or sneezing.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
