Several crew members have contacted Crew Center today saying that one crew member tested positive for COVID-19 on the German cruise ship Mein Schiff 3. A crew member has also sent us a recording of the announcement made on the PA system informing the crew about the test results. The announcement confirms one positive case among the crew which were tested, also adding that not all the crew was tested, only selected crew which had contacts with many people onboard did the tests.

Once again Royal Caribbean has proven that the company truly cares about the shipboard employees. Even in these difficult times for all, the company decided each crew member to receive a $400 goodwill pay. In a letter distributed among Royal Caribbean crew members who are still aboard the ships the company said the selected crew are entitled to financial support.

Another crew member of the cruise ship Costa Fascinosa has died as a result of complications caused by the Coronavirus. Rudy Haryanto - Assistant Housekeeping Manager from Indonesia has died in a hospital in Santos after testing positive for Covid-19.

Hundreds of birds were discovered dead on a cruise ship open deck by the crew, yesterday morning. A crew member who wishes to remain anonymous recorded a video of the sight which appears as if the birds had dropped down dead from the sky.

The German cruise line Aida Cruises plans to use cruise ships to repatriate crew back home. According to a message send by a crew member the repatriation process will start by transferring the crew on one ship which will then set sail to Europe from where charter flights will be organized for the crew.

48 crew members onboard the cruise ship Costa Atlantica which is docked in the Japanese port of Nagasaki for repairs, tested positive at COVID-19. The Japanese authorities announced today, 14 additional crew members are confirmed positive from the latest tests, all among the kitchen and dining room staff.

Dear friends and colleagues, we lost another fellow crew member. It’s a sad day for all of us when we heard the news about the death of Bendie Antonio, a Filipino crew member of Costa Cruises. Bendie was taken off the cruise ship Costa Fascinosa and transferred to a hospital in Santos, Brazil, together with nine of his fellow crew members who tested positive for the virus.

Holland America Line Group is in process of creating a plan to sail repatriation voyages to return thousands of crew members home to Europe, Asia, South America and the Caribbean. In order to put this plan in action, there are multiple challenges to consider including the individual destination of each crew member, U.S.

The cruise ship Carnival Magic is preparing to welcome the Eastern European crew on board before setting sail on a long journey across the Atlantic. The plan to return as many crew members as possible was put in place since the company announced the extended pause in operations until June 27.

Carnival Cruise Line plans to use more cruise ships in order to bring back as many as possible crew members back home. After the company put in action the plan to repatriate Filipino and Indonesian crew from Carnival Splendor and Spirit, now an additional five Carnival ships will be used to expatriate the crew home.