Cruise ship carrying 237 Canadians reports 21 confirmed cases of COVID-19 so far

A cruise ship carrying 237 Canadians is being held in the waters off San Francisco due to COVID-19.

So far, officials have 21 confirmed cases of the virus on board.

Princess Cruises issued a statement late Friday saying the first phase of health screenings aboard the Grand Princess included 45 passengers and crew.

So far, two passengers and 19 crew members have tested positive. The nationalities of the infected people have not been disclosed.

There are 3,533 people aboard the ship, including 2,422 passengers and 1,111 crew from 54 countries.

“The ship’s doctor is in the process of informing the guests and crew of their individual results,” the statement said. “All guests and affected crew will remain isolated in their rooms.”

A statement from the White House said that American officials are planning to bring the ship to a non-commercial port, where all the passengers and crew will be tested.

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said during a news conference that, "It’s very likely that the crew on the Grand Princess was exposed on two different outings, and we know the coronavirus manifested among the previous passengers.”

Three of Canada’s 54 confirmed or presumptive cases of COVID-19 were among passengers who were aboard the same ship from Feb. 11 to 21 during a cruise that began and ended in San Francisco.

The Public Health Agency of Canada has since been trying to find more than 260 Canadians who were on that ship.

Officials across the country are prioritizing efforts to sanitize places where people gather in close quarters, such as planes, trains, subways and stadiums in response to the virus.

The number of infected people worldwide exceeded 100,000 on Friday.

-With files from the Canadian Press