1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,680 Speaker 1: I'm Carol Masser and I'm Jason Kelly. We're bringing you 2 00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:05,160 Speaker 1: one of the stories You've gotta here in this week's 3 00:00:05,360 --> 00:00:08,479 Speaker 1: edition of Bloomberg Business Week. On the afternoon of March eighth, 4 00:00:08,640 --> 00:00:12,959 Speaker 1: Holland America's MS ZANDAM cast off from Buenos Aires and 5 00:00:13,000 --> 00:00:15,640 Speaker 1: headed east on what some passengers hope would be a 6 00:00:15,720 --> 00:00:19,280 Speaker 1: multi week journey around South America and Jason. Yet, just 7 00:00:19,480 --> 00:00:23,599 Speaker 1: an hour earlier, the CDC had tweeted quote U s citizens, 8 00:00:23,720 --> 00:00:27,639 Speaker 1: especially with underlying conditions, should not travel by cruise ship 9 00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:32,720 Speaker 1: hashtag CDC notes increased risk of hashtag COVID nineteen on cruises. 10 00:00:33,240 --> 00:00:36,120 Speaker 1: Zend M is a midsized cruise ship. It's got births, 11 00:00:36,120 --> 00:00:39,640 Speaker 1: with one thousand, four hundred thirty two passengers and crew 12 00:00:39,720 --> 00:00:43,200 Speaker 1: and the sedate vibe of an ocean liner. But within 13 00:00:43,320 --> 00:00:47,400 Speaker 1: days of its departure, the coronavirus had stricken the ship's population. Eventually, 14 00:00:47,520 --> 00:00:50,839 Speaker 1: dozens would fall sick and three would die from the virus, 15 00:00:51,080 --> 00:00:53,199 Speaker 1: and with passengers falling ill, the ship was denied a 16 00:00:53,320 --> 00:00:56,840 Speaker 1: port by country after country. The full tally of COVID 17 00:00:56,840 --> 00:01:00,000 Speaker 1: cases on the Zendem well that may never be known. 18 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:03,400 Speaker 1: And what's more, certain is that the company's executives badly 19 00:01:03,480 --> 00:01:09,080 Speaker 1: underestimated the virus. Passengers finally disembarked in Florida on April second, 20 00:01:09,280 --> 00:01:12,280 Speaker 1: and yet Jason two months later, the cruise industry remains 21 00:01:12,280 --> 00:01:15,679 Speaker 1: shut down and economically staggered. A no sale order issued 22 00:01:15,680 --> 00:01:19,399 Speaker 1: by the CDC six days after the Zandam's departure has 23 00:01:19,400 --> 00:01:22,480 Speaker 1: since been renewed through the end of July. In a sense, 24 00:01:22,520 --> 00:01:25,559 Speaker 1: the Zandam's odyssey is a dark parable of what economists 25 00:01:25,600 --> 00:01:29,360 Speaker 1: calls socializing losses. A company takes on risks it cannot 26 00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:32,640 Speaker 1: handle itself, knowing that if things go awry, the public 27 00:01:32,720 --> 00:01:37,280 Speaker 1: will be forced to rescue it. The pariah ship. The 28 00:01:37,319 --> 00:01:40,880 Speaker 1: cruise industry was already in a COVID nineteen crisis when 29 00:01:40,920 --> 00:01:44,440 Speaker 1: the MS zan Dam set sail, Yet Holland America was 30 00:01:44,520 --> 00:01:47,880 Speaker 1: unprepared when people began to fall sick, and country after 31 00:01:47,960 --> 00:01:52,920 Speaker 1: country turned the ship away. By Michael Smith, Drake Bennett, 32 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:58,240 Speaker 1: and k Uan Ha on March, the MS Zandam sat 33 00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:01,120 Speaker 1: at Anchor off the coast of Panama, its sun decks 34 00:02:01,120 --> 00:02:05,360 Speaker 1: and swimming pools deserted, the lounges and casino quiet for 35 00:02:05,440 --> 00:02:08,760 Speaker 1: the seventh straight day. Passengers were confined to their cabins, 36 00:02:08,760 --> 00:02:11,200 Speaker 1: with one of the few things cruises endeavor not to 37 00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:16,720 Speaker 1: abundantly provide time alone with dark thoughts. Crew members moved 38 00:02:16,720 --> 00:02:20,960 Speaker 1: through the narrow hallways, delivering meals and medication. Periodically, a 39 00:02:21,040 --> 00:02:24,400 Speaker 1: doctor or nurse brought another passenger to the Zandam's small 40 00:02:24,440 --> 00:02:29,040 Speaker 1: medical center as its receptionaria filled coughing patients stood in 41 00:02:29,080 --> 00:02:33,560 Speaker 1: the corridor. The previous day, Captain Anni Smitt had come 42 00:02:33,560 --> 00:02:36,000 Speaker 1: over the intercom and announced what most of his listeners 43 00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:40,600 Speaker 1: already suspected, COVID nineteen was on the ship. Two people 44 00:02:40,639 --> 00:02:44,200 Speaker 1: had tested positive so far, and four passengers had died. 45 00:02:45,000 --> 00:02:47,200 Speaker 1: One of those deaths, according to the u S Centers 46 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:49,880 Speaker 1: for Disease Control and Prevention, would turn out not to 47 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:53,240 Speaker 1: be from the coronavirus. In addition, because the ship was 48 00:02:53,280 --> 00:02:56,280 Speaker 1: carrying the disease, its request to pass through the Panama 49 00:02:56,360 --> 00:02:59,839 Speaker 1: Canal into the Caribbean had been denied. As Smitt made 50 00:02:59,880 --> 00:03:03,320 Speaker 1: his announcement, fifty three passengers and eighty five crew members 51 00:03:03,320 --> 00:03:06,400 Speaker 1: were sick. The ship had been in limbo for almost 52 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:09,200 Speaker 1: two weeks, but until now it had at least been 53 00:03:09,240 --> 00:03:13,200 Speaker 1: moving up the entire Pacific coast of South America, as 54 00:03:13,280 --> 00:03:17,520 Speaker 1: nation after nation refused to let the passengers ashore. Now 55 00:03:17,560 --> 00:03:20,800 Speaker 1: it had come to rest. A small Panamamian patrol boat 56 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:26,520 Speaker 1: loitered nearby. Among the Zandam passengers were two Americans from Missouri. 57 00:03:27,160 --> 00:03:29,840 Speaker 1: Sitting in their cabin looking out their sealed porthole at 58 00:03:29,880 --> 00:03:34,400 Speaker 1: Panama City's palisade of skyscrapers, Clive and Sharon Hutton found 59 00:03:34,440 --> 00:03:38,760 Speaker 1: themselves veering from hope to dread and then regret. A 60 00:03:38,800 --> 00:03:42,120 Speaker 1: few hundred yards away, the Huttons could see the MS Rotterdam, 61 00:03:42,120 --> 00:03:44,960 Speaker 1: which had arrived two days earlier. It was a foot 62 00:03:45,000 --> 00:03:48,080 Speaker 1: shorter than the zan Dam at seven eighty feet, but 63 00:03:48,160 --> 00:03:51,800 Speaker 1: otherwise almost identical. Both vessels had the navy blue hull, 64 00:03:52,160 --> 00:03:55,480 Speaker 1: teak decks, and white superstructure of a Holland America Line ship. 65 00:03:56,280 --> 00:03:59,360 Speaker 1: The Hutton's watched as two orange and white tenders shuttled 66 00:03:59,360 --> 00:04:02,160 Speaker 1: between the ship. The covered boats were bringing over much 67 00:04:02,240 --> 00:04:06,280 Speaker 1: needed protective gear and COVID tests along with doctors, nurses 68 00:04:06,320 --> 00:04:09,160 Speaker 1: and crew members who had volunteered to reinforce their colleagues 69 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:13,000 Speaker 1: on the Zandam, and they were carrying away passengers deemed 70 00:04:13,080 --> 00:04:16,680 Speaker 1: COVID free. With each trip they were separating more of 71 00:04:16,680 --> 00:04:21,440 Speaker 1: the healthy from the unwell. That morning, medical personnel in masks, 72 00:04:21,480 --> 00:04:24,120 Speaker 1: gloves and gowns had appeared at the Hutton's cabin on 73 00:04:24,160 --> 00:04:26,880 Speaker 1: the Dolphin deck to take their temperatures and have them 74 00:04:26,920 --> 00:04:30,640 Speaker 1: fill out a questionnaire. Passengers who passed this cursory check 75 00:04:30,680 --> 00:04:33,680 Speaker 1: were eligible to transfer to the Rotterdam. As far as 76 00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:36,960 Speaker 1: the couple knew they'd passed, both were fever free and 77 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:40,200 Speaker 1: felt fine, and people over age seventy as they were 78 00:04:40,240 --> 00:04:44,560 Speaker 1: were being given priority. Then hours later, the medical staff 79 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:47,720 Speaker 1: came back and told them to unpack. Lance as everyone 80 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:50,760 Speaker 1: called him, had divulged on his questionnaire that he used 81 00:04:50,760 --> 00:04:54,240 Speaker 1: a c PAP machine, a device to treat sleep apnea, 82 00:04:54,480 --> 00:04:58,840 Speaker 1: for reasons he couldn't understand. That was disqualifying. They had 83 00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:01,320 Speaker 1: to remain on the six ship, as Lance had started 84 00:05:01,320 --> 00:05:04,480 Speaker 1: calling it. The Huttons, from the small town of Forest Dell, 85 00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:07,840 Speaker 1: had bought their tickets many months in advance. They'd fly 86 00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:10,279 Speaker 1: to Buenos Aires, spend a couple of days in the city, 87 00:05:10,640 --> 00:05:13,120 Speaker 1: then set sail down the east coast of South America 88 00:05:13,720 --> 00:05:17,240 Speaker 1: around Cape Horn and back up the other side. And 89 00:05:17,720 --> 00:05:20,520 Speaker 1: because they had sprung for the extended thirty one day option. 90 00:05:20,960 --> 00:05:24,000 Speaker 1: They'd continue after the first leg, ended in San Antonio, Chile, 91 00:05:24,480 --> 00:05:26,400 Speaker 1: all the way up to the Panama Canal and on 92 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:30,240 Speaker 1: to Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The capstone for 93 00:05:30,360 --> 00:05:33,680 Speaker 1: Lance would be an excursion to Machu Picchu, the fifteenth 94 00:05:33,680 --> 00:05:37,279 Speaker 1: century Incan ruined in the Peruvian Andes. In the weeks 95 00:05:37,279 --> 00:05:40,000 Speaker 1: before their departure, Lance had monitored the spread of the 96 00:05:40,000 --> 00:05:43,400 Speaker 1: coronavirus and begun to worry about the trip. He'd followed 97 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:46,359 Speaker 1: the cruise ship outbreaks, first on the Diamond Princess in 98 00:05:46,400 --> 00:05:49,240 Speaker 1: February and then on the Grand Princess days before his 99 00:05:49,279 --> 00:05:53,200 Speaker 1: own voyage. Princess cruizes, like Holland America, is part of 100 00:05:53,200 --> 00:05:56,880 Speaker 1: the giant cruise operator Carnival. At eighty and seventy nine 101 00:05:56,960 --> 00:05:59,960 Speaker 1: years old, respectively, he and Sharon were squarely in the 102 00:06:00,040 --> 00:06:04,080 Speaker 1: at risk population for COVID nineteen. Lance had wanted to cancel, 103 00:06:04,320 --> 00:06:08,200 Speaker 1: but Holland America sent him an email on February specifying 104 00:06:08,240 --> 00:06:10,720 Speaker 1: that refunds were limited to customers who could prove they 105 00:06:10,760 --> 00:06:13,479 Speaker 1: had had contact with someone who had the virus or 106 00:06:13,520 --> 00:06:17,159 Speaker 1: had recently traveled to China. On March five, he checked again, 107 00:06:17,520 --> 00:06:21,120 Speaker 1: but the policy hadn't changed. On March sixth, the day 108 00:06:21,120 --> 00:06:24,920 Speaker 1: before the Zendaims passengers began boarding, Holland America did loosen 109 00:06:24,960 --> 00:06:29,080 Speaker 1: its cancelation policy. Lance never learned of it, and so 110 00:06:29,160 --> 00:06:31,880 Speaker 1: the couple had gone ahead with the trip. Throwing away 111 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:34,919 Speaker 1: twenty thousand dollars just felt too extravagant to a retired 112 00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:38,680 Speaker 1: school superintendent. I'm sure many people on board felt the same, 113 00:06:38,760 --> 00:06:41,080 Speaker 1: he said, speaking by phone as the ship sat in 114 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:43,800 Speaker 1: Panama Bay. If they'd had a chance, they would have 115 00:06:43,800 --> 00:06:46,240 Speaker 1: gotten out of it. Now, the Hunton's just wanted to 116 00:06:46,279 --> 00:06:49,560 Speaker 1: get home. Word of the deaths had rattled the couple. 117 00:06:50,200 --> 00:06:53,200 Speaker 1: Lance was particularly worried about Sharon, his wife of fifty 118 00:06:53,200 --> 00:06:56,960 Speaker 1: six years. She had bronchiac TASiS, a chronic condition that 119 00:06:57,040 --> 00:07:00,840 Speaker 1: made her susceptible to airway infections, and he'd lost faith 120 00:07:00,839 --> 00:07:04,440 Speaker 1: in the company that he now painfully realized he'd trusted 121 00:07:04,480 --> 00:07:07,280 Speaker 1: with their lives. I just don't think they thought about 122 00:07:07,320 --> 00:07:10,240 Speaker 1: this very well, he said. That's the only complaint I have. 123 00:07:10,800 --> 00:07:13,040 Speaker 1: By the time the Zandam made it to port on 124 00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:16,080 Speaker 1: April two, its passengers would be some of the only 125 00:07:16,120 --> 00:07:19,520 Speaker 1: cruisers left on Earth. Some would still be very sick 126 00:07:19,920 --> 00:07:22,840 Speaker 1: and not all of them would survive. Two months later, 127 00:07:22,880 --> 00:07:26,720 Speaker 1: the cruise industry remains shut down and economically staggered. A 128 00:07:26,800 --> 00:07:29,040 Speaker 1: no sale order issued by the c d C six 129 00:07:29,120 --> 00:07:32,360 Speaker 1: days after the Zandam's departure has since been renewed through 130 00:07:32,360 --> 00:07:36,120 Speaker 1: the end of July, but Carnival and Royal Caribbean International, 131 00:07:36,320 --> 00:07:40,280 Speaker 1: the industries two dominant players, tentatively planned to start cruising 132 00:07:40,280 --> 00:07:44,000 Speaker 1: again on August one. If the industry keeps to this timeline, 133 00:07:44,360 --> 00:07:47,200 Speaker 1: ships will be departing and moving thousands from port to 134 00:07:47,280 --> 00:07:50,680 Speaker 1: port while COVID clusters still burn around the world and 135 00:07:50,720 --> 00:07:55,360 Speaker 1: a vaccine remains notional. To help customers swallow any misgivings, 136 00:07:55,720 --> 00:07:58,200 Speaker 1: Carnival has offered rates as low as twenty eight dollars 137 00:07:58,200 --> 00:08:02,520 Speaker 1: a day, including food. The company says it's learned from 138 00:08:02,520 --> 00:08:06,280 Speaker 1: its first deadly wave of COVID nineteen outbreaks. In announcing 139 00:08:06,280 --> 00:08:09,520 Speaker 1: its plans, Carnival promised to use this additional time to 140 00:08:09,560 --> 00:08:13,840 Speaker 1: continue to engage experts, government officials, and stakeholders on additional 141 00:08:13,880 --> 00:08:16,560 Speaker 1: protocols and procedures to protect the health and safety of 142 00:08:16,560 --> 00:08:20,640 Speaker 1: our guests, crew and the communities we serve. Of course, 143 00:08:20,920 --> 00:08:23,000 Speaker 1: the company had time to do all of that before 144 00:08:23,040 --> 00:08:27,200 Speaker 1: the Zandam departed two. The Diamond Princess outbreak, which sickened 145 00:08:27,240 --> 00:08:30,440 Speaker 1: more than seven hundred and killed at least thirteen on 146 00:08:30,440 --> 00:08:34,280 Speaker 1: an East Asian cruise, happened a full month before, and 147 00:08:34,360 --> 00:08:37,080 Speaker 1: yet the accounts of those on the Zandam and those 148 00:08:37,120 --> 00:08:39,880 Speaker 1: outside Holland America and Carnival who stepped in to help 149 00:08:39,880 --> 00:08:43,520 Speaker 1: get the vessel home suggest that the company squandered that time. 150 00:08:44,240 --> 00:08:48,680 Speaker 1: Its executives badly underestimated the virus. They assumed the Zandam 151 00:08:48,800 --> 00:08:50,680 Speaker 1: was safe because it was traveling through a part of 152 00:08:50,679 --> 00:08:54,080 Speaker 1: the world with relatively few COVID nineteen cases, and they 153 00:08:54,120 --> 00:08:57,760 Speaker 1: assumed protocols created for past on board disease outbreaks could 154 00:08:57,760 --> 00:09:00,920 Speaker 1: contain the new one too. When neither of those things 155 00:09:00,920 --> 00:09:04,840 Speaker 1: turned out to be true, they assumed someone would help them. 156 00:09:04,880 --> 00:09:07,320 Speaker 1: At the end of the day, those issues had to resolve. 157 00:09:07,840 --> 00:09:09,680 Speaker 1: That ship couldn't sit off the coast of any of 158 00:09:09,679 --> 00:09:14,040 Speaker 1: those countries indefinitely, says Orlando Ashford, who resigned as president 159 00:09:14,080 --> 00:09:16,880 Speaker 1: of Holland America on June one. We had to end 160 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:19,520 Speaker 1: up someplace. So it was just a function of who 161 00:09:19,600 --> 00:09:22,280 Speaker 1: was going to go and step up in a sense. 162 00:09:22,600 --> 00:09:25,839 Speaker 1: The Zandam's odyssey is a dark parable of what economists 163 00:09:25,840 --> 00:09:29,840 Speaker 1: call socializing losses. A company takes on risks it cannot 164 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:33,160 Speaker 1: handle itself, knowing that if things go awry, the public 165 00:09:33,160 --> 00:09:36,320 Speaker 1: will be forced to rescue it. In the zan Dam's case, 166 00:09:36,440 --> 00:09:39,680 Speaker 1: the rescue was literal and the losses measured in more 167 00:09:39,720 --> 00:09:46,200 Speaker 1: than money. Claudia Osiani and her husband Won Henning, who 168 00:09:46,280 --> 00:09:48,439 Speaker 1: reached the zen Dam on the afternoon of March seven, 169 00:09:48,800 --> 00:09:50,880 Speaker 1: were only a five hour car ride from their home 170 00:09:50,920 --> 00:09:54,080 Speaker 1: in the Argentine resort city of Mar del Plata. The 171 00:09:54,160 --> 00:09:56,640 Speaker 1: cruise was Henning's gift to his wife for her sixty 172 00:09:56,679 --> 00:09:59,640 Speaker 1: fourth birthday. One of the zan Dam's first ports of 173 00:09:59,679 --> 00:10:03,280 Speaker 1: call was the Falkland Islands, whose penguin rockeries and quaint, 174 00:10:03,360 --> 00:10:07,439 Speaker 1: incongruously British towns are the prime attraction for most visitors. 175 00:10:08,160 --> 00:10:11,280 Speaker 1: Argentines have a different relationship to the ease Las Malvinas, 176 00:10:11,360 --> 00:10:14,719 Speaker 1: as they call them, shaped by a disastrous N two 177 00:10:14,720 --> 00:10:19,120 Speaker 1: war with the UK over the remote colonial outpost. Oceani, 178 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:22,600 Speaker 1: a psychologist, had treated veterans of the Falklands War for 179 00:10:22,679 --> 00:10:25,160 Speaker 1: post traumatic stress disorder as a young resident at a 180 00:10:25,240 --> 00:10:28,360 Speaker 1: naval hospital and Since then, she'd dreamed of seeing where 181 00:10:28,360 --> 00:10:32,640 Speaker 1: they had fought. As experienced cruisers. Oceani and Henning new 182 00:10:32,679 --> 00:10:36,040 Speaker 1: Holland America's reputation for luxury at prices below those of 183 00:10:36,080 --> 00:10:39,160 Speaker 1: the top end lines. With berths for fourteen hundred and 184 00:10:39,240 --> 00:10:42,360 Speaker 1: thirty two passengers and six hundred and fifteen crew, the 185 00:10:42,480 --> 00:10:46,480 Speaker 1: Zandam is mid size. Some newer ships accommodate four times 186 00:10:46,520 --> 00:10:49,520 Speaker 1: that number, with the sedate vibe of an ocean liner 187 00:10:49,679 --> 00:10:53,960 Speaker 1: rather than a cancoon bachanal a Rococo pipe organ dominates 188 00:10:54,000 --> 00:10:58,319 Speaker 1: the atrium, and music themed memorabilia throughout the ship. Guitars 189 00:10:58,360 --> 00:11:00,880 Speaker 1: autographed by the members of the Rolling Stones and Queen 190 00:11:01,360 --> 00:11:05,040 Speaker 1: a saxophone signed by Bill Clinton evoked the bygone rock 191 00:11:05,080 --> 00:11:09,440 Speaker 1: and roll youth of the mostly older passengers. Oceani didn't 192 00:11:09,440 --> 00:11:12,440 Speaker 1: want to seem ungrateful for her husband's lavish gift, but 193 00:11:12,559 --> 00:11:15,559 Speaker 1: like Lance Hutton, she was uneasy. On the drive to 194 00:11:15,640 --> 00:11:18,280 Speaker 1: Buenos Aires, the couple assured each other that the crews 195 00:11:18,280 --> 00:11:23,000 Speaker 1: would probably be mostly locals. Argentina had just seventeen confirmed 196 00:11:23,040 --> 00:11:27,320 Speaker 1: COVID nineteen cases and one death. At the time. We said, no, 197 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:30,920 Speaker 1: we're going so far south, she recalls, it's just going 198 00:11:30,960 --> 00:11:33,520 Speaker 1: to be a bunch of Argentines and maybe some Chileans. 199 00:11:34,240 --> 00:11:36,520 Speaker 1: When they got to the ship terminal, though, they found 200 00:11:36,520 --> 00:11:40,160 Speaker 1: themselves in a sea of Europeans and Americans, all those 201 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:44,360 Speaker 1: people from where the pandemic was. The next day, passengers 202 00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:47,719 Speaker 1: settled into their cabins or explored Buenos Aires at four 203 00:11:47,760 --> 00:11:50,640 Speaker 1: or forty four pm local time, with the crew making 204 00:11:50,679 --> 00:11:53,960 Speaker 1: final preparations to embark. The U S Department of States 205 00:11:54,000 --> 00:11:57,320 Speaker 1: Bureau of Consular Affairs announced a travel advisory via Twitter. 206 00:11:58,320 --> 00:12:02,000 Speaker 1: U S citizens, especially with lying conditions, should not travel 207 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:05,240 Speaker 1: by cruise ship. The tweet warned hashtag c d C 208 00:12:05,640 --> 00:12:10,200 Speaker 1: notes increased risk of hashtag COVID nineteen on cruises. Many 209 00:12:10,240 --> 00:12:14,719 Speaker 1: countries have implemented screening procedures, denied port entry rights to ships, 210 00:12:14,760 --> 00:12:18,440 Speaker 1: and prevented disembarking. A little more than an hour later, 211 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:21,160 Speaker 1: the Zandam cast off into the broad mouth of the 212 00:12:21,240 --> 00:12:24,920 Speaker 1: Rio de la Plata and headed east. Montevideo, Uruguay, was 213 00:12:24,960 --> 00:12:28,200 Speaker 1: to be its first port of call. According to Ashford, 214 00:12:28,200 --> 00:12:31,720 Speaker 1: the State Department advisory didn't warrant canceling the Zandam's trip. 215 00:12:32,280 --> 00:12:35,120 Speaker 1: These things ebbed and flowed. He says, it was not 216 00:12:35,240 --> 00:12:38,679 Speaker 1: clear there were a lot of statements at that point. 217 00:12:38,720 --> 00:12:41,080 Speaker 1: The priority was making sure passengers who had paid for 218 00:12:41,120 --> 00:12:45,200 Speaker 1: a premium cruise got their money's worth. We're trying to 219 00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:49,640 Speaker 1: protect and deliver a wonderful guest experience, a wonderful vacation experience, 220 00:12:49,720 --> 00:12:52,960 Speaker 1: Ashford says, and that's what this business is engineered to do. 221 00:12:54,160 --> 00:12:57,520 Speaker 1: Protecting the guests from the accelerating epidemic was not something 222 00:12:57,559 --> 00:12:59,960 Speaker 1: he thought he would have to worry about. It was 223 00:13:00,040 --> 00:13:02,959 Speaker 1: on the other side of the world, he says. As 224 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:06,440 Speaker 1: the zan Dam set sail, Ashford's own wife and teenage 225 00:13:06,440 --> 00:13:08,280 Speaker 1: son were in the middle of a four month world 226 00:13:08,360 --> 00:13:11,720 Speaker 1: cruise on the m S Amsterdam. Ashford wasn't frightened for 227 00:13:11,800 --> 00:13:15,000 Speaker 1: his family. I had a conversation with my wife, he recalls, 228 00:13:15,400 --> 00:13:17,240 Speaker 1: Will I take you off a ship where no one 229 00:13:17,280 --> 00:13:19,840 Speaker 1: has COVID and fly you to Seattle, which was a 230 00:13:19,880 --> 00:13:23,320 Speaker 1: hot spot at the time. No, he told her, you 231 00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:27,760 Speaker 1: are on the safest place. According to Holland America spokesman 232 00:13:27,920 --> 00:13:30,760 Speaker 1: Eric Elviord, the cruise line made sure to follow the 233 00:13:30,800 --> 00:13:34,880 Speaker 1: CDC's recommendations at that time, adding cleaning procedures and giving 234 00:13:34,920 --> 00:13:39,520 Speaker 1: health surveys to embarking passengers on the zan Dam, Oceani 235 00:13:39,640 --> 00:13:42,040 Speaker 1: did feel relatively safe. For the first few days of 236 00:13:42,040 --> 00:13:45,360 Speaker 1: the journey, she and Henning befriended a few Argentine and 237 00:13:45,480 --> 00:13:48,760 Speaker 1: Uruguayan couples, and after Montevideo and two days in the 238 00:13:48,800 --> 00:13:52,440 Speaker 1: South Atlantic, the ship arrived at the Falklands. An old 239 00:13:52,440 --> 00:13:54,640 Speaker 1: friend who lived there met the couple and guided them 240 00:13:54,640 --> 00:13:59,040 Speaker 1: around the four decade old battlefields. It was wonderful being there, finally, 241 00:13:59,120 --> 00:14:02,000 Speaker 1: Oceani said, is but if visiting the end of the 242 00:14:02,040 --> 00:14:05,480 Speaker 1: world made the pandemic feel distant to the ship's passengers, 243 00:14:05,520 --> 00:14:09,520 Speaker 1: their hosts saw things differently. The World Health Organization had 244 00:14:09,559 --> 00:14:13,760 Speaker 1: just declared COVID nineteen a pandemic. Kim Doutois, a twenty 245 00:14:13,760 --> 00:14:16,120 Speaker 1: six year old South African who worked on the Zandam 246 00:14:16,280 --> 00:14:19,400 Speaker 1: as an assistant shore excursion manager, says that as she 247 00:14:19,520 --> 00:14:22,320 Speaker 1: was loading the vans for a penguin tour, she noticed 248 00:14:22,360 --> 00:14:25,440 Speaker 1: the local drivers were fearful. At that time, there were 249 00:14:25,440 --> 00:14:28,480 Speaker 1: no known cases on the Falklands. They would tell us, 250 00:14:28,680 --> 00:14:30,360 Speaker 1: if you want to blow your nose, throw it in 251 00:14:30,360 --> 00:14:33,240 Speaker 1: this packet right away, and we'll seal it up and 252 00:14:33,280 --> 00:14:37,080 Speaker 1: throw it away. Dotoa says they were nervous about ships 253 00:14:37,120 --> 00:14:40,880 Speaker 1: coming in. They had reason to be. The Zandam's next 254 00:14:40,920 --> 00:14:44,160 Speaker 1: stop was Punta Arenas, Chile, a city as close to 255 00:14:44,160 --> 00:14:47,080 Speaker 1: Antarctica as it is to the Chilean capital of Santiago. 256 00:14:47,680 --> 00:14:50,840 Speaker 1: Each year during the austral summer, cruises visited more than 257 00:14:50,880 --> 00:14:54,960 Speaker 1: one hundred times, disgorging tourists who spend money in local 258 00:14:54,960 --> 00:14:57,920 Speaker 1: shops and restaurants, and gaze across the Strait of Magellan 259 00:14:57,960 --> 00:15:01,560 Speaker 1: at Tierra del Fuego, the Archipela Ago where South America ends. 260 00:15:02,280 --> 00:15:04,640 Speaker 1: On March seven and eight, three year old Britain on 261 00:15:04,680 --> 00:15:07,840 Speaker 1: a small luxury cruise ship called the Silver Explorer, had 262 00:15:07,880 --> 00:15:10,040 Speaker 1: gotten off in town for a half day tour of 263 00:15:10,080 --> 00:15:13,680 Speaker 1: the area. Five days later, the ship stopped at Khalta Tortell, 264 00:15:14,080 --> 00:15:17,480 Speaker 1: an isolated coastal village of stilt houses and wooden walkways, 265 00:15:17,840 --> 00:15:21,520 Speaker 1: and the passenger began showing symptoms of COVID nineteen. He 266 00:15:21,560 --> 00:15:24,120 Speaker 1: was taken to a hospital where he tested positive for 267 00:15:24,160 --> 00:15:29,160 Speaker 1: the disease, then airlifted to Santiago. Punta Arenuss Mayor Claudio 268 00:15:29,240 --> 00:15:32,680 Speaker 1: Radonitch is convinced the man was patient zero for the region. 269 00:15:33,360 --> 00:15:37,000 Speaker 1: We believe this came with tourists. He says, when news 270 00:15:37,000 --> 00:15:40,720 Speaker 1: of the diagnosis got out, Kaleta Tortell barricaded the single 271 00:15:40,800 --> 00:15:44,080 Speaker 1: road into town, and Radonitch begged the Punta Arrenus Port 272 00:15:44,120 --> 00:15:48,240 Speaker 1: director to ban cruise ships. When the Zandam arrived on 273 00:15:48,360 --> 00:15:51,680 Speaker 1: March fourteenth, the port was still open and residents were 274 00:15:51,680 --> 00:15:55,520 Speaker 1: starting to get sick. Chilean authorities required temperature checks for 275 00:15:55,600 --> 00:15:58,640 Speaker 1: everyone getting off the ship to explore the town. It 276 00:15:58,680 --> 00:16:02,280 Speaker 1: was very ugly. Could feel people staring, just wanting us out, 277 00:16:02,560 --> 00:16:06,360 Speaker 1: Osani recalls. The sense of foreboding was heightened by the 278 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:09,080 Speaker 1: news that the extended leg of the voyage had been canceled. 279 00:16:09,600 --> 00:16:13,480 Speaker 1: Everyone would disembark a week later in San Antonio. Countries 280 00:16:13,520 --> 00:16:16,960 Speaker 1: were closing their borders, and Holland America wanted to ensure 281 00:16:17,000 --> 00:16:21,760 Speaker 1: that passengers could get home that day. March was also 282 00:16:21,800 --> 00:16:24,880 Speaker 1: when the CDC ordered all cruise ship departures to stop. 283 00:16:25,720 --> 00:16:28,640 Speaker 1: In justifying the measure, the no sale order laid out 284 00:16:28,680 --> 00:16:31,920 Speaker 1: some of the characteristics that made the vessels particularly vulnerable 285 00:16:31,960 --> 00:16:35,720 Speaker 1: to the new disease. The dynamics of passenger to passenger, 286 00:16:36,000 --> 00:16:39,080 Speaker 1: passenger to crew, crew to passenger, and crew to crew 287 00:16:39,160 --> 00:16:43,080 Speaker 1: intermingling in a semi closed setting are particularly conducive to 288 00:16:43,320 --> 00:16:48,400 Speaker 1: stars covey to spread, resulting in high transmission rates. Packed 289 00:16:48,440 --> 00:16:52,000 Speaker 1: theater or a crowded excursion van is an ideal environment 290 00:16:52,040 --> 00:16:56,320 Speaker 1: for a virus that spreads through respiratory droplets. Confined quarters 291 00:16:56,360 --> 00:16:59,600 Speaker 1: increase the odds it will spread between cabin mats, especially 292 00:16:59,640 --> 00:17:03,000 Speaker 1: among crew sleeping several to a room and eating impacked 293 00:17:03,000 --> 00:17:06,600 Speaker 1: mess halls. The older demographic of the clientele makes them 294 00:17:06,640 --> 00:17:09,560 Speaker 1: more likely to get severe cases of the disease, and 295 00:17:09,640 --> 00:17:12,240 Speaker 1: with each port it visits, a cruise ship releases its 296 00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:16,479 Speaker 1: passengers into a new community. The CDC began working with 297 00:17:16,520 --> 00:17:19,520 Speaker 1: global cruise companies to harden their fleets against disease in 298 00:17:19,560 --> 00:17:22,920 Speaker 1: the early two thousands after a series of high profile 299 00:17:23,040 --> 00:17:27,240 Speaker 1: gastro intestinal outbreaks on ships. The zen Dam is flagged 300 00:17:27,240 --> 00:17:29,320 Speaker 1: in the Netherlands, but like the rest of the one 301 00:17:29,359 --> 00:17:32,520 Speaker 1: hundred or so cruise ships calling on American ports, it's 302 00:17:32,560 --> 00:17:36,000 Speaker 1: subject to two surprise inspections a year by US authorities. 303 00:17:36,640 --> 00:17:40,040 Speaker 1: Since it's christening in two thousand, the zan Dam's inspection 304 00:17:40,080 --> 00:17:44,000 Speaker 1: scores and the CDC's vessel sanitation program have averaged nine 305 00:17:44,400 --> 00:17:47,480 Speaker 1: point five out of a hundred in it got a 306 00:17:47,480 --> 00:17:52,640 Speaker 1: perfect hundred. This hasn't, however, translated into actual perfection. According 307 00:17:52,720 --> 00:17:57,159 Speaker 1: to the VSP database, the ZENDAM has reported five disease outbreaks, 308 00:17:57,440 --> 00:18:02,159 Speaker 1: four norovirus and one unknown since two thousand, an unusually 309 00:18:02,240 --> 00:18:06,760 Speaker 1: high rate. Holland America has more reported disease outbreaks than 310 00:18:06,800 --> 00:18:10,560 Speaker 1: any other cruise line. VSP data show, as indicated by 311 00:18:10,560 --> 00:18:14,280 Speaker 1: the VSP scores, Zanda maintains a high level of attention 312 00:18:14,320 --> 00:18:18,520 Speaker 1: to guest health and sanitation. Holland America's Elviord wrote in 313 00:18:18,560 --> 00:18:22,800 Speaker 1: an email, Nora virus is very common shore side and 314 00:18:22,840 --> 00:18:25,760 Speaker 1: can be brought to a ship easily and is easily 315 00:18:25,800 --> 00:18:29,480 Speaker 1: transmitted from person to person. The day before the CDC 316 00:18:29,720 --> 00:18:32,520 Speaker 1: no Sale order, the member companies of the Cruise Lines 317 00:18:32,520 --> 00:18:36,439 Speaker 1: International Association, including Holland America and the other major lines, 318 00:18:36,800 --> 00:18:40,600 Speaker 1: had announced the voluntary suspension of all departures from US ports. 319 00:18:41,240 --> 00:18:45,240 Speaker 1: Before that, however, they'd lobbied heavily against restrictions on cruising. 320 00:18:45,920 --> 00:18:48,439 Speaker 1: On March six, the c l i A issued a 321 00:18:48,440 --> 00:18:52,520 Speaker 1: statement saying any action to restrict cruising is unwarranted and 322 00:18:52,600 --> 00:18:56,040 Speaker 1: at odds with the World Health Organization. The group warned 323 00:18:56,080 --> 00:18:59,600 Speaker 1: of possibly irreversible effects on the national and local economies 324 00:18:59,600 --> 00:19:03,720 Speaker 1: depending on cruise tourism. On March seven, the chief executive 325 00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:07,440 Speaker 1: officers of Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian met with Vice 326 00:19:07,440 --> 00:19:11,520 Speaker 1: President Mike Pence at Port Everglades, after which Pence touted 327 00:19:11,560 --> 00:19:15,240 Speaker 1: their new plans for quarantining passengers who became ill at sea. 328 00:19:15,440 --> 00:19:19,360 Speaker 1: Weeks later, the CEO of Carnival Holland America's parent company 329 00:19:19,760 --> 00:19:22,399 Speaker 1: was still assuring the public that it could protect those 330 00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:25,600 Speaker 1: already aboard its ships. We do things you don't see 331 00:19:25,640 --> 00:19:28,520 Speaker 1: in the general public, Arnold Donald said in a Bloomberg 332 00:19:28,560 --> 00:19:31,320 Speaker 1: Business Week interview on April one, the day before the 333 00:19:31,400 --> 00:19:34,399 Speaker 1: zan Dam was finally able to dock in Florida. We 334 00:19:34,520 --> 00:19:38,040 Speaker 1: do temperature scans, we do medical records, we have a 335 00:19:38,080 --> 00:19:41,520 Speaker 1: medical on board. We do deep cleanings. Because you have 336 00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:44,000 Speaker 1: to keep in mind, we sail around the world all 337 00:19:44,040 --> 00:19:48,760 Speaker 1: the time. There's been ebola, Zica, stars, merse, so we 338 00:19:48,840 --> 00:19:51,400 Speaker 1: have to deal with this stuff all the time. CDC 339 00:19:51,600 --> 00:19:55,040 Speaker 1: officials say the cruise industry ignored recommendations to act sooner. 340 00:19:55,640 --> 00:19:58,320 Speaker 1: We have told them time and again to stop sailing, 341 00:19:58,920 --> 00:20:02,720 Speaker 1: said Cindy Friedman, an epidemiologist who leads the CDC's cruise 342 00:20:02,720 --> 00:20:06,440 Speaker 1: ship Coronavirus Responds task Force in an April tenth interview, 343 00:20:07,040 --> 00:20:09,480 Speaker 1: dealing with the outbreaks on the Princess ships had been 344 00:20:09,520 --> 00:20:14,400 Speaker 1: costly and complex, involving doctors, health officials, diplomats, and military 345 00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:18,639 Speaker 1: legisticians on multiple continents. The sooner these ships stopped sailing, 346 00:20:18,920 --> 00:20:21,640 Speaker 1: the better for protection of public health and to preserve 347 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:25,560 Speaker 1: resources that could be used elsewhere, Friedman said. After leaving 348 00:20:25,560 --> 00:20:30,520 Speaker 1: Punta Arenas, the Zandam steamed towards Ushawaya, Argentina, three hundred 349 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:33,680 Speaker 1: and eighty miles to the southeast. Some passengers went to 350 00:20:33,720 --> 00:20:35,720 Speaker 1: bed early to make sure they were up the next 351 00:20:35,720 --> 00:20:38,879 Speaker 1: morning to savor the passage down Glacier Alley in the 352 00:20:38,920 --> 00:20:42,119 Speaker 1: Beagle Channel, named for the ship that first mapped it, 353 00:20:42,320 --> 00:20:46,080 Speaker 1: with Charles Darwin aboard. Amanda Bogan was up late. The 354 00:20:46,119 --> 00:20:48,239 Speaker 1: twenty seven year old worked on the cruise as an 355 00:20:48,359 --> 00:20:52,680 Speaker 1: entertainment host, organizing and m seeing trivia nights, magic shows, 356 00:20:52,760 --> 00:20:56,399 Speaker 1: scavenger hunts, and on this particular night, the Orange Party, 357 00:20:56,720 --> 00:21:00,240 Speaker 1: a celebration of the cruise lines home country circular aiding 358 00:21:00,280 --> 00:21:04,040 Speaker 1: Among the Orange clann guests, Bogan wasn't thinking about the pandemic, 359 00:21:04,400 --> 00:21:06,760 Speaker 1: and none of her supervisors had told her she should be. 360 00:21:07,320 --> 00:21:09,840 Speaker 1: We were at the very bottom of South America, so 361 00:21:09,960 --> 00:21:12,959 Speaker 1: far away from everything that was happening, she says, the 362 00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:16,800 Speaker 1: idea that the coronavirus would reach the ship just seemed impossible. 363 00:21:17,160 --> 00:21:20,560 Speaker 1: During the party, Bogan felt the floor tilting. It was 364 00:21:20,640 --> 00:21:23,800 Speaker 1: unusual to be so aware of the ship turning. Later, 365 00:21:23,880 --> 00:21:25,879 Speaker 1: she made her way down to the officer's bar and 366 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:28,440 Speaker 1: met some friends, and they explained that the ship had 367 00:21:28,480 --> 00:21:32,280 Speaker 1: turned around. Argentina was shutting its ports against the pandemic. 368 00:21:32,920 --> 00:21:36,480 Speaker 1: Chile too, was preparing to close its borders, banning cruise 369 00:21:36,480 --> 00:21:39,080 Speaker 1: ships as of eight the next morning, so the ship 370 00:21:39,160 --> 00:21:43,320 Speaker 1: was racing back to Punta Arenas. The Gandam arrived well 371 00:21:43,400 --> 00:21:46,360 Speaker 1: before dawn, and guests received a note from Ashford under 372 00:21:46,400 --> 00:21:50,480 Speaker 1: their doors. Our current sailing will now terminate in Punta Arenas, Chile, 373 00:21:50,960 --> 00:21:54,600 Speaker 1: where we have arrived today. It read, we are sincerely 374 00:21:54,640 --> 00:21:57,280 Speaker 1: sorry that your voyage has come to such an abrupt end. 375 00:21:58,200 --> 00:22:01,800 Speaker 1: There were instructions about rebooking lights and a section on refunds, 376 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:05,000 Speaker 1: but the note was wrong. Chile, it turned out, had 377 00:22:05,000 --> 00:22:07,440 Speaker 1: closed the port early, and when the sun came up 378 00:22:07,520 --> 00:22:10,480 Speaker 1: passenger saw a navy cutter between the Xan Dame and shore. 379 00:22:11,160 --> 00:22:14,320 Speaker 1: At nightfall, with the ship anchored in the harbor, residents 380 00:22:14,359 --> 00:22:18,240 Speaker 1: gathered for impromptu protests, blaring their car horns and screaming 381 00:22:18,280 --> 00:22:22,840 Speaker 1: angrily across the water. The next evening, March sixteenth, Captain 382 00:22:22,880 --> 00:22:26,320 Speaker 1: Smit announced that negotiations between Holland America until in health 383 00:22:26,359 --> 00:22:30,800 Speaker 1: officials had broken down. The Zandam was headed back to sea. 384 00:22:31,040 --> 00:22:32,960 Speaker 1: The only thing that captain could tell us is we're 385 00:22:33,000 --> 00:22:35,920 Speaker 1: going north, says Rick de Pino, a New Jersey patent 386 00:22:35,960 --> 00:22:38,800 Speaker 1: attorney who was on board with his wife Wendy. In 387 00:22:38,840 --> 00:22:41,720 Speaker 1: the absence of a sure thing, the navigation officer plotted 388 00:22:41,720 --> 00:22:45,800 Speaker 1: courses to three possible ports, San Diego, Fort Lauderdale, and 389 00:22:45,840 --> 00:22:49,280 Speaker 1: Puerto Vayar to Mexico. On the night of March twenty first, 390 00:22:49,560 --> 00:22:52,560 Speaker 1: De Pino, says, the cruise director addressed the audience at 391 00:22:52,560 --> 00:22:55,600 Speaker 1: a comedy show. I really don't know where we are going, 392 00:22:55,720 --> 00:22:58,960 Speaker 1: he remembers the man, saying, it's the voyage to Nowhere. 393 00:23:01,480 --> 00:23:04,960 Speaker 1: A cruise to nowhere was still a cruise. We tried 394 00:23:05,000 --> 00:23:07,399 Speaker 1: to pack every day with as many fun activities as 395 00:23:07,440 --> 00:23:10,600 Speaker 1: we could, says Bogan. Corporate had given them the go 396 00:23:10,600 --> 00:23:13,760 Speaker 1: ahead to do anything they could, anything to keep them 397 00:23:13,800 --> 00:23:17,560 Speaker 1: I guess just happy and distracted. There were extra trivia 398 00:23:17,680 --> 00:23:21,919 Speaker 1: contests and a twist Off dance party. The casino bars 399 00:23:21,960 --> 00:23:25,199 Speaker 1: and hot tubs were full. An English tenor sang to 400 00:23:25,200 --> 00:23:28,320 Speaker 1: a crowded theater, joking between numbers about how the ship 401 00:23:28,359 --> 00:23:32,840 Speaker 1: felt like a hostage situation. At one point, Osiani, convinced 402 00:23:32,840 --> 00:23:35,680 Speaker 1: that more people were coughing as each day passed, went 403 00:23:35,760 --> 00:23:37,919 Speaker 1: to the reception desk and asked the attendant why the 404 00:23:37,920 --> 00:23:41,560 Speaker 1: ship wasn't prohibiting large gatherings. He looked at me and asked, 405 00:23:41,840 --> 00:23:43,800 Speaker 1: why should we do that when the boat is safe, 406 00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:49,080 Speaker 1: She says, there were some precautions. Cruisers are typically passionate 407 00:23:49,080 --> 00:23:52,960 Speaker 1: about the self service buffets. Now, larger plastic shields had 408 00:23:53,000 --> 00:23:56,320 Speaker 1: appeared along the food stations, and attendants were ladling out 409 00:23:56,359 --> 00:23:59,320 Speaker 1: the portions. Osiani made a point of asking them why 410 00:23:59,359 --> 00:24:02,240 Speaker 1: they weren't wearing masks or gloves, and was told repeatedly 411 00:24:02,280 --> 00:24:05,000 Speaker 1: that there weren't enough to go around. A member of 412 00:24:05,000 --> 00:24:07,600 Speaker 1: the cleaning staff interviewed for this story who didn't want 413 00:24:07,640 --> 00:24:10,160 Speaker 1: his name used for fear of losing his job gave 414 00:24:10,200 --> 00:24:14,480 Speaker 1: a different reason. His supervisor discouraged masks, saying they would 415 00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:18,640 Speaker 1: spook the passengers. On March seventeenth, the ship heard from 416 00:24:18,640 --> 00:24:22,280 Speaker 1: a Swedish travel agency one of its customers, a seventy 417 00:24:22,359 --> 00:24:25,840 Speaker 1: nine year old widower named Banked Vernerson, was on board 418 00:24:25,840 --> 00:24:29,520 Speaker 1: alone and his daughter in Stockholm shanty. At Vernerson, Doll 419 00:24:29,920 --> 00:24:33,119 Speaker 1: hadn't heard from him in two days. The crew found 420 00:24:33,160 --> 00:24:36,040 Speaker 1: him in his cabin, not feeling well, with a fever 421 00:24:36,160 --> 00:24:39,160 Speaker 1: and a slight cough. Doll was worried enough to make 422 00:24:39,240 --> 00:24:42,480 Speaker 1: arrangements through a company called International s o S for 423 00:24:42,560 --> 00:24:44,679 Speaker 1: an ambulance to be waiting to take her father to 424 00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:47,959 Speaker 1: a hospital. When the Zandam, having been refused entry at 425 00:24:47,960 --> 00:24:53,080 Speaker 1: San Antonio, arrived at nearby Valparaiso, Doll's arrangements were in vain. 426 00:24:53,480 --> 00:24:57,080 Speaker 1: Chile refused to let the Zandam dock at Valparaiso either. 427 00:24:57,640 --> 00:25:00,600 Speaker 1: On March twenty one, a fifty one year old housekeeping 428 00:25:00,640 --> 00:25:03,840 Speaker 1: supervisor named we wat We Darto spoke by phone with 429 00:25:03,920 --> 00:25:08,359 Speaker 1: his wife Annidoco, back in Batam, Indonesia. He complained of 430 00:25:08,359 --> 00:25:10,840 Speaker 1: a headache, a bitter taste in his mouth, and a 431 00:25:10,920 --> 00:25:14,760 Speaker 1: sore tongue. We Darto didn't think he had COVID nineteen, 432 00:25:15,080 --> 00:25:16,960 Speaker 1: but even if he did, he wouldn't have been able 433 00:25:17,000 --> 00:25:20,320 Speaker 1: to confirm it. Holland America hadn't supplied the Zandam with 434 00:25:20,359 --> 00:25:24,399 Speaker 1: COVID tests. Asked why, Ashford says the tests were in 435 00:25:24,440 --> 00:25:27,639 Speaker 1: short supply and he thought they were unreliable. So we 436 00:25:27,760 --> 00:25:30,679 Speaker 1: just assumed if you had flu like symptoms, we in 437 00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:34,720 Speaker 1: an over abundance of caution, we assumed COVID to be safer. 438 00:25:35,280 --> 00:25:38,640 Speaker 1: The next day, the ship went into lockdown. Captain Smit 439 00:25:38,800 --> 00:25:42,359 Speaker 1: announced that multiple passengers and crew with influenza like respiratory 440 00:25:42,359 --> 00:25:46,080 Speaker 1: illness symptoms had reported to the medical center. Out of 441 00:25:46,080 --> 00:25:48,960 Speaker 1: an abundance of caution, we must ask at this time 442 00:25:49,000 --> 00:25:51,680 Speaker 1: that everyone returned to your staterooms as soon as you 443 00:25:51,720 --> 00:25:54,879 Speaker 1: were done with lunch, he continued, where regrettably, we are 444 00:25:54,920 --> 00:25:57,840 Speaker 1: going to have to ask you to remain. The ship 445 00:25:57,920 --> 00:26:01,800 Speaker 1: moved north past Peru and Equity Or toward Columbia. All 446 00:26:01,920 --> 00:26:05,359 Speaker 1: three had closed their ports. The Huttons were allowedly their 447 00:26:05,400 --> 00:26:08,040 Speaker 1: cabin once in six days for a thirty minute walk 448 00:26:08,080 --> 00:26:11,720 Speaker 1: on deck, chaperoned by crew members dressed in what Lance 449 00:26:11,720 --> 00:26:15,200 Speaker 1: thought looked like has mat suits. Around nine o'clock the 450 00:26:15,280 --> 00:26:18,119 Speaker 1: night of the twenty five, de Pino, tracking the ship's 451 00:26:18,119 --> 00:26:22,159 Speaker 1: progress on Marine Traffic dot Com, noticed it suddenly head east. 452 00:26:23,200 --> 00:26:25,800 Speaker 1: As Captain Smith announced the next morning, they had made 453 00:26:25,800 --> 00:26:28,760 Speaker 1: an unannounced stop off Manta, Ecuador to meet a boat 454 00:26:28,840 --> 00:26:32,720 Speaker 1: carrying supplies. The nighttime resupply had been kept secret from 455 00:26:32,720 --> 00:26:36,000 Speaker 1: the passengers for fear of protests in the port and 456 00:26:36,080 --> 00:26:40,080 Speaker 1: for fear of jeopardizing this operation. The captain apologetically explained, 457 00:26:40,680 --> 00:26:43,199 Speaker 1: you all know how fast things can go by social media. 458 00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:47,040 Speaker 1: Along with other medical supplies, the boxes loaded onto the 459 00:26:47,040 --> 00:26:51,280 Speaker 1: ship contained masks, which were distributed to passengers along with breakfast. 460 00:26:51,920 --> 00:26:55,200 Speaker 1: All that time until the twenty six, they obviously didn't 461 00:26:55,240 --> 00:26:58,840 Speaker 1: have masks for everybody on the ship. Dupino says, we 462 00:26:58,880 --> 00:27:01,840 Speaker 1: went to great length to acquire masks for guests and crew. 463 00:27:01,920 --> 00:27:06,480 Speaker 1: Mid Voyage. Holland America's Elvior wrote a few days earlier, 464 00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:10,520 Speaker 1: shortly before passengers were confined to their cabins, Duti, the 465 00:27:10,560 --> 00:27:13,960 Speaker 1: South African shore excursion manager, had been asked to start 466 00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:17,600 Speaker 1: performing crew temperature checks. A member of the medical staff 467 00:27:17,640 --> 00:27:20,240 Speaker 1: had explained how she and a few colleagues were to 468 00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:22,600 Speaker 1: work their way down lists of everyone in food and 469 00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:26,040 Speaker 1: beverage and housekeeping. Anyone with the fever was sent back 470 00:27:26,080 --> 00:27:29,240 Speaker 1: to their cabin to self isolate, along with anyone sharing 471 00:27:29,280 --> 00:27:32,960 Speaker 1: their room. The first morning, Dutois reported to the medical 472 00:27:33,000 --> 00:27:35,879 Speaker 1: center to get her files and protective gear. She was 473 00:27:35,920 --> 00:27:39,800 Speaker 1: alarmed at what she saw. There's a reception area, she recalls, 474 00:27:40,320 --> 00:27:43,400 Speaker 1: there were probably at least ten guests in there, then 475 00:27:43,440 --> 00:27:46,480 Speaker 1: about six to eight crew lining the wall. That was 476 00:27:46,560 --> 00:27:49,120 Speaker 1: just in the beginning already. The next day we had 477 00:27:49,160 --> 00:27:51,440 Speaker 1: one of the guests. They're so sick that he was 478 00:27:51,480 --> 00:27:55,760 Speaker 1: getting oxygen and on a ventilator. The protective gear kept proliferating. 479 00:27:56,119 --> 00:27:59,840 Speaker 1: First she was given masks and gloves, then scrubs, plastic 480 00:28:00,040 --> 00:28:03,439 Speaker 1: friends and goggles like others. She recalls being told at 481 00:28:03,440 --> 00:28:05,879 Speaker 1: first not to wear the gear in the guest areas. 482 00:28:06,880 --> 00:28:09,679 Speaker 1: It's likely that one of the passengers Dutoi saw in 483 00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:13,840 Speaker 1: the medical center was Vernerson on March. He was on 484 00:28:13,920 --> 00:28:17,320 Speaker 1: oxygen when he spoke with his daughter in Stockholm. He 485 00:28:17,400 --> 00:28:20,520 Speaker 1: had a dry kind of voice. She recalls, I knew 486 00:28:20,520 --> 00:28:25,199 Speaker 1: what was going to happen on March. He died the 487 00:28:25,280 --> 00:28:28,320 Speaker 1: day before. Doll had called Holland America and asked that 488 00:28:28,359 --> 00:28:31,639 Speaker 1: a note be relayed to him. WE miss you, we 489 00:28:31,720 --> 00:28:34,200 Speaker 1: love you lots. We hope to get you back home soon. 490 00:28:34,280 --> 00:28:37,400 Speaker 1: It read I just hope that someone read that to him, 491 00:28:37,480 --> 00:28:41,920 Speaker 1: Doll says, because I know he was alone. After his death, 492 00:28:42,280 --> 00:28:46,680 Speaker 1: testing revealed that Vernerson had COVID nineteen. Crew members began 493 00:28:46,720 --> 00:28:50,280 Speaker 1: to get sick in alarming numbers. The stepped up sanitation 494 00:28:50,360 --> 00:28:52,880 Speaker 1: regime was grueling for Widarto and the rest of the 495 00:28:52,920 --> 00:28:56,480 Speaker 1: dwindling staff, as was the sudden shift to delivering meals 496 00:28:56,480 --> 00:29:00,240 Speaker 1: to seven cabins. Bogan recalls a dinner companion and in 497 00:29:00,280 --> 00:29:03,280 Speaker 1: the crew dining area one night breaking down in tears. 498 00:29:04,000 --> 00:29:07,560 Speaker 1: He was crying from exhaustion. She recalls the next morning, 499 00:29:07,600 --> 00:29:10,800 Speaker 1: the man went into isolation as a suspected COVID nineteen case. 500 00:29:11,480 --> 00:29:15,400 Speaker 1: On March, Doutoi's boyfriend, who also worked on the ship, 501 00:29:15,600 --> 00:29:18,560 Speaker 1: spiked a fever. The pair began to self isolate in 502 00:29:18,600 --> 00:29:22,480 Speaker 1: their cabin, and soon Dutois had a fever too. The 503 00:29:22,560 --> 00:29:25,800 Speaker 1: tally of COVID cases on the Zandam and the Rotterdam 504 00:29:25,840 --> 00:29:29,520 Speaker 1: may never be known. There are thirteen known cases. Based 505 00:29:29,520 --> 00:29:32,720 Speaker 1: on an analysis by the Miami Herald According to the 506 00:29:32,760 --> 00:29:35,400 Speaker 1: c d C, more than two d and fifty people 507 00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:39,760 Speaker 1: reported illness consistent with COVID nineteen, but Holland America hasn't 508 00:29:39,760 --> 00:29:42,280 Speaker 1: revealed how many of those people were actually tested for 509 00:29:42,320 --> 00:29:45,920 Speaker 1: the disease. Several passengers interviewed by a Business Week who 510 00:29:45,920 --> 00:29:49,400 Speaker 1: tested positive for COVID did so only after leaving the ship. 511 00:29:50,200 --> 00:29:54,520 Speaker 1: By this point in the voyage, various governments had become involved. Eventually, 512 00:29:54,560 --> 00:29:57,040 Speaker 1: Port Everglades was identified as the best port for the 513 00:29:57,040 --> 00:29:59,800 Speaker 1: ship if it could somehow make it through the Panama Canal. 514 00:30:00,600 --> 00:30:04,160 Speaker 1: The issue wasn't just transitting the canal. Holland America was 515 00:30:04,200 --> 00:30:07,480 Speaker 1: also hoping to fly medical supplies and personnel into the country, 516 00:30:07,960 --> 00:30:10,480 Speaker 1: load them on to the stricken ship, and fly out 517 00:30:10,520 --> 00:30:14,560 Speaker 1: the very ill. Panama was intransigent, and officials at the U. S. 518 00:30:14,560 --> 00:30:18,240 Speaker 1: Embassy there urged the company to explore other options. One 519 00:30:18,320 --> 00:30:21,400 Speaker 1: was to replace the airlift with a ship. The fastest 520 00:30:21,440 --> 00:30:24,440 Speaker 1: in the fleet, the Rotterdam, was docked at Puerto Vallarta 521 00:30:24,520 --> 00:30:27,200 Speaker 1: with no passengers and could reach the canal in less 522 00:30:27,240 --> 00:30:31,240 Speaker 1: than four days. On March twenty second, Holland America decided 523 00:30:31,240 --> 00:30:34,640 Speaker 1: to dispatch it. The Rotterdam came within sight of the 524 00:30:34,720 --> 00:30:37,600 Speaker 1: Zandam on the evening of March twenty sixth, after a 525 00:30:37,600 --> 00:30:40,920 Speaker 1: tumultuous voyage. It was only after it had departed that 526 00:30:41,000 --> 00:30:43,160 Speaker 1: much of the crew learned of plans to bring aboard 527 00:30:43,160 --> 00:30:46,719 Speaker 1: passengers from the Zandam, and many threatened to barricade themselves 528 00:30:46,760 --> 00:30:50,280 Speaker 1: in their cabins rather than interact with the potentially ill guests. 529 00:30:51,080 --> 00:30:55,080 Speaker 1: Ashford and Carnivals chief medical officer Grant Tarling had to 530 00:30:55,120 --> 00:30:57,480 Speaker 1: call in to a ninety minute all hands meeting in 531 00:30:57,520 --> 00:31:01,320 Speaker 1: the ship's theater to try to quell the unrest. Ashford 532 00:31:01,320 --> 00:31:03,320 Speaker 1: says he gave crew members the option to stay in 533 00:31:03,320 --> 00:31:06,920 Speaker 1: their cabins, but appealed for their help. I said, if 534 00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:10,080 Speaker 1: the tides were turned and the situations were reversed, I'm 535 00:31:10,080 --> 00:31:11,880 Speaker 1: sure you would want the zan Dam to come to 536 00:31:11,960 --> 00:31:16,840 Speaker 1: your aid, he says. Most agreed to work. On March seven, 537 00:31:17,280 --> 00:31:20,840 Speaker 1: with negotiations over the canal still going on, the transfer 538 00:31:20,880 --> 00:31:24,719 Speaker 1: of passengers began. Oceani and Henning were among the eight 539 00:31:24,800 --> 00:31:28,560 Speaker 1: hundred eight Zandam passengers cleared to go across. A crew 540 00:31:28,600 --> 00:31:31,400 Speaker 1: member in a mask, gloves and protective gown led the 541 00:31:31,400 --> 00:31:33,520 Speaker 1: couple down to a hatchway in the side of the ship, 542 00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:35,960 Speaker 1: where one of the orange and white tenders bobbed on 543 00:31:36,000 --> 00:31:39,200 Speaker 1: the waves. As they climbed aboard the Rotterdam, they and 544 00:31:39,240 --> 00:31:42,680 Speaker 1: their luggage were fogged down with disinfectant. The couple were 545 00:31:42,680 --> 00:31:45,479 Speaker 1: assigned the cabin corresponding exactly to the one they had 546 00:31:45,560 --> 00:31:49,520 Speaker 1: left late on The u S State Department led diplomatic 547 00:31:49,520 --> 00:31:52,680 Speaker 1: effort bore Fruit and Panama agreed to let the Zandam 548 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:55,640 Speaker 1: and the Rotterdam through the canal. The next evening, the 549 00:31:55,680 --> 00:31:59,400 Speaker 1: passenger transfer complete. Crews disinfected the bridges of the ships 550 00:31:59,480 --> 00:32:03,520 Speaker 1: so the authorities, specially trained pilots could come aboard. A 551 00:32:03,600 --> 00:32:07,320 Speaker 1: single pilot in full body protective gear boarded each vessel 552 00:32:07,440 --> 00:32:10,000 Speaker 1: and over the next seven hours, maneuvered it through the 553 00:32:10,000 --> 00:32:14,320 Speaker 1: canals tricky series of locks and waterways. Passengers were told 554 00:32:14,360 --> 00:32:17,520 Speaker 1: to turn down their lights and draw their curtains. If 555 00:32:17,520 --> 00:32:20,320 Speaker 1: they had a balcony, they were to stay inside. In 556 00:32:20,400 --> 00:32:23,160 Speaker 1: some stretches of the canal, Panamanian soil was just a 557 00:32:23,160 --> 00:32:25,960 Speaker 1: few feet away the pilots. As soon as they left 558 00:32:26,000 --> 00:32:29,840 Speaker 1: the ships went into quarantine. As the two ships headed 559 00:32:29,880 --> 00:32:33,400 Speaker 1: up through the Caribbean toward Florida, new cases appeared on 560 00:32:33,440 --> 00:32:36,480 Speaker 1: the Rotterdam as well as the zan Dam. On March 561 00:32:36,520 --> 00:32:40,360 Speaker 1: twenty nine, with Darto, the housekeeping supervisor, told his wife 562 00:32:40,360 --> 00:32:42,280 Speaker 1: that he still had a headache and a cough was 563 00:32:42,320 --> 00:32:45,520 Speaker 1: coming on. She remembers trying to switch their call to 564 00:32:45,560 --> 00:32:48,040 Speaker 1: a video chat so she could have a look at him, 565 00:32:48,040 --> 00:32:51,040 Speaker 1: but he quickly switched it back. He was still at work, 566 00:32:51,120 --> 00:32:54,440 Speaker 1: he told her, and very busy. The Hutton's too began 567 00:32:54,480 --> 00:32:58,960 Speaker 1: to get sick. Their symptoms diarrhea, nausea, lack of appetite 568 00:32:59,320 --> 00:33:02,400 Speaker 1: didn't match with medical authorities were attributing to COVID nineteen 569 00:33:02,440 --> 00:33:05,280 Speaker 1: at the time, but Sharon was alarmed enough to call 570 00:33:05,360 --> 00:33:09,760 Speaker 1: the Zandam's guest services line. Even after multiple tries, no 571 00:33:09,840 --> 00:33:12,320 Speaker 1: one came to the room or called back, so the 572 00:33:12,360 --> 00:33:17,400 Speaker 1: couple took commodium and waited. Their symptoms worsened. Sharon developed 573 00:33:17,400 --> 00:33:23,080 Speaker 1: a cough, then Lance did too. Even as they headed 574 00:33:23,080 --> 00:33:25,720 Speaker 1: for Florida, it was still far from certain the two 575 00:33:25,720 --> 00:33:28,320 Speaker 1: ships would be able to dock when they arrived. The 576 00:33:28,400 --> 00:33:32,239 Speaker 1: state's governor, Rhonda Santis, among others, had come out against it. 577 00:33:32,680 --> 00:33:34,760 Speaker 1: We cannot afford to have people who are not even 578 00:33:34,800 --> 00:33:39,400 Speaker 1: Floridians dumped into South Florida, using up those valuable resources, 579 00:33:39,440 --> 00:33:43,320 Speaker 1: he said in a Fox News interview. Officials in Broward County, 580 00:33:43,520 --> 00:33:47,600 Speaker 1: where Port Everglades is located, were inundated with emails, many 581 00:33:47,720 --> 00:33:50,400 Speaker 1: from residents horrified by the prospect of an influx of 582 00:33:50,440 --> 00:33:54,320 Speaker 1: sick passengers, many others from people with friends or relatives 583 00:33:54,360 --> 00:33:57,320 Speaker 1: on the ships, equally horrified by the prospect of leaving 584 00:33:57,360 --> 00:34:00,920 Speaker 1: them at sea. On March thirty, a plaintive op ed 585 00:34:00,960 --> 00:34:03,760 Speaker 1: by Ashford was published in the South Florida Sun Sentinel. 586 00:34:04,360 --> 00:34:08,239 Speaker 1: The international community, consistently generous and helpful in the face 587 00:34:08,280 --> 00:34:11,920 Speaker 1: of human suffering, shut itself off to Zandam, leaving her 588 00:34:11,960 --> 00:34:16,000 Speaker 1: defend for herself. He wrote, his company had done nothing wrong. 589 00:34:16,040 --> 00:34:18,719 Speaker 1: He insisted the ship had been the victim of unforeseen 590 00:34:18,760 --> 00:34:23,400 Speaker 1: circumstances and uncarrying governments. It's tempting, He went on to 591 00:34:23,440 --> 00:34:26,400 Speaker 1: speculate about the illnesses that may have been avoided or 592 00:34:26,480 --> 00:34:29,000 Speaker 1: lives saved if we'd gotten the assistance we saw it. 593 00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:33,440 Speaker 1: Weeks ago, as the piece was being published, Glenn Wiltshire, 594 00:34:33,560 --> 00:34:36,640 Speaker 1: the Port Everglades Director, along with representatives from the c 595 00:34:36,719 --> 00:34:39,360 Speaker 1: d C, the U S Coast Guard, the Florida Department 596 00:34:39,360 --> 00:34:42,319 Speaker 1: of Health, and the Broward County Sheriff's Office had to 597 00:34:42,320 --> 00:34:44,760 Speaker 1: come up with a planned for Holland America and Carnival 598 00:34:45,040 --> 00:34:48,360 Speaker 1: to offload the passengers without spreading disease or panic throughout 599 00:34:48,360 --> 00:34:52,840 Speaker 1: South Florida. Even after the princess outbreaks, Carnival didn't have 600 00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:57,120 Speaker 1: protocols ready to unload a coronavirus infected ship at Port Everglades. 601 00:34:57,760 --> 00:35:01,759 Speaker 1: Government officials repeatedly pressed Carnival and Holland America executives for 602 00:35:01,840 --> 00:35:04,040 Speaker 1: more detail on how the company planned to get people 603 00:35:04,080 --> 00:35:06,799 Speaker 1: off the ship and out of Florida and at its 604 00:35:06,840 --> 00:35:10,359 Speaker 1: own expense. On April two, the parties reached a deal 605 00:35:10,440 --> 00:35:13,759 Speaker 1: allowing the two ships to dock. The majority of passengers, 606 00:35:13,920 --> 00:35:17,759 Speaker 1: those judged to be healthy and sixty four in all, 607 00:35:18,200 --> 00:35:20,680 Speaker 1: would board buses at the port and be taken directly 608 00:35:20,719 --> 00:35:23,319 Speaker 1: to the tarmac at the Fort Lauderdale Airport to be 609 00:35:23,360 --> 00:35:26,480 Speaker 1: flown out on five chartered flights across the US, Canada, 610 00:35:26,520 --> 00:35:30,600 Speaker 1: and Europe. Thirteen passengers would be cared for in local hospitals. 611 00:35:31,239 --> 00:35:34,320 Speaker 1: It's the humanitarian thing to do, the governor told Fox 612 00:35:34,360 --> 00:35:39,359 Speaker 1: News late that afternoon. Greeted by a line of thirteen ambulances. 613 00:35:39,680 --> 00:35:43,000 Speaker 1: The Zandam docked for the first time since Punta Arenas, 614 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:46,560 Speaker 1: followed by the Rotterdam. Teams of doctors and nurses came 615 00:35:46,560 --> 00:35:49,040 Speaker 1: aboard to see which passengers were fit to travel home 616 00:35:49,120 --> 00:35:51,799 Speaker 1: on their own. Still unable to get through to the 617 00:35:51,800 --> 00:35:54,600 Speaker 1: medical center by phone, the Hutton's made their way to 618 00:35:54,640 --> 00:35:58,560 Speaker 1: the examination area. A week before, they'd felt fine but 619 00:35:58,600 --> 00:36:02,360 Speaker 1: were kept aboard the Zendam, this time, weak and in pain, 620 00:36:02,760 --> 00:36:06,759 Speaker 1: they were cleared to travel. Their temperatures were normal by 621 00:36:06,800 --> 00:36:09,120 Speaker 1: the next morning, though Sharon was unable to leave their 622 00:36:09,120 --> 00:36:12,440 Speaker 1: cabin this time. When Lance called for help, a nurse 623 00:36:12,520 --> 00:36:16,120 Speaker 1: came alarmed at Charon's condition. She asked why they hadn't 624 00:36:16,120 --> 00:36:19,000 Speaker 1: called sooner than rushed Charon to the medical center to 625 00:36:19,000 --> 00:36:22,400 Speaker 1: be put on oxygen and antibiotics. Lance was at first 626 00:36:22,400 --> 00:36:25,400 Speaker 1: deemed well enough to fly home later that day, but 627 00:36:25,520 --> 00:36:28,560 Speaker 1: within hours he deteriorated enough that he was kept aboard 628 00:36:28,560 --> 00:36:31,799 Speaker 1: the emptying ship in his cabin alone. He is still 629 00:36:31,840 --> 00:36:34,479 Speaker 1: not feeling well and is stuck in his same room 630 00:36:34,520 --> 00:36:37,480 Speaker 1: for an indefinite period of time. Amy Hutton, their daughter, 631 00:36:37,920 --> 00:36:41,560 Speaker 1: posted on Facebook that day again, I am helpless and 632 00:36:41,600 --> 00:36:46,120 Speaker 1: so are they please continue to pray. The ship's medical 633 00:36:46,160 --> 00:36:49,440 Speaker 1: personnel finally gave Sharon a COVID nineteen test, which came 634 00:36:49,440 --> 00:36:52,960 Speaker 1: back positive. Her coughing fits were driving her blood oxygen 635 00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:57,440 Speaker 1: to dangerously low levels. An increasingly desperate Amy was finally 636 00:36:57,480 --> 00:37:00,760 Speaker 1: able to reach someone at a Holland America emergency hotline 637 00:37:00,840 --> 00:37:04,080 Speaker 1: who got a doctor to check on Lance. On April five, 638 00:37:04,280 --> 00:37:06,960 Speaker 1: Sharon was flown to Orlando, where she was placed in 639 00:37:06,960 --> 00:37:10,840 Speaker 1: a special COVID nineteen ward in an intensive care unit. Lance, 640 00:37:10,880 --> 00:37:14,359 Speaker 1: whose COVID test had also come back positive, soon followed her. 641 00:37:14,880 --> 00:37:18,440 Speaker 1: The couple were placed on ventilators for days. The couple 642 00:37:18,520 --> 00:37:21,839 Speaker 1: lay across the hall from each other. Slowly, Lance began 643 00:37:21,920 --> 00:37:26,960 Speaker 1: to improve Sharon's body, though was shutting down. The following weekend, 644 00:37:27,280 --> 00:37:30,319 Speaker 1: she seemed a little better and Amy arranged a video call, 645 00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:34,239 Speaker 1: but a few hours later Sharon went into shock. A 646 00:37:34,320 --> 00:37:37,000 Speaker 1: nurse put a cell phone to her ear with Amy 647 00:37:37,040 --> 00:37:39,719 Speaker 1: on the line. I was at least able to tell 648 00:37:39,760 --> 00:37:42,800 Speaker 1: her goodbye, Amy says, and tell her it was okay 649 00:37:42,840 --> 00:37:45,759 Speaker 1: to go. She died at eleven o one p m. 650 00:37:45,840 --> 00:37:49,720 Speaker 1: On April eleven of acute respiratory distress caused by COVID 651 00:37:49,840 --> 00:37:53,680 Speaker 1: nineteen and pneumonia. According to the Medical Examiner. A few 652 00:37:53,760 --> 00:37:57,360 Speaker 1: days earlier, Widarto had also died. The day before the 653 00:37:57,440 --> 00:38:00,560 Speaker 1: Zandam docked, Holland America had informed his wife that he 654 00:38:00,560 --> 00:38:03,040 Speaker 1: had been admitted to the ship's medical center with shortness 655 00:38:03,040 --> 00:38:05,839 Speaker 1: of breath. The next day, she heard that one crew 656 00:38:05,880 --> 00:38:08,840 Speaker 1: member had been admitted to a Florida hospital, and she 657 00:38:08,960 --> 00:38:11,920 Speaker 1: soon learned that it was her husband. Because he was 658 00:38:11,960 --> 00:38:15,200 Speaker 1: in isolation, sedated, and on a ventilator, it was hard 659 00:38:15,200 --> 00:38:17,720 Speaker 1: for her to speak to him, but in video calls 660 00:38:17,760 --> 00:38:21,360 Speaker 1: with hospital staff she was able to at least see him. 661 00:38:21,400 --> 00:38:23,919 Speaker 1: She plans to place his ashes in his parents tomb 662 00:38:23,960 --> 00:38:28,160 Speaker 1: in Jakarta. The majority of the sick passengers were deemed 663 00:38:28,160 --> 00:38:31,359 Speaker 1: recovered and fit to travel by company medical staff. When 664 00:38:31,360 --> 00:38:35,719 Speaker 1: the ship stocked in Florida, Carnival and Holland America, as promised, 665 00:38:35,800 --> 00:38:37,960 Speaker 1: flew almost all of them out of the state within 666 00:38:38,000 --> 00:38:40,719 Speaker 1: a day, though for a few the journey stretched on 667 00:38:40,920 --> 00:38:44,719 Speaker 1: much longer. Osiani and Henning would languish on the Rotterdam 668 00:38:44,760 --> 00:38:47,680 Speaker 1: for another three and a half weeks, waiting for approval 669 00:38:47,719 --> 00:38:51,040 Speaker 1: from the Argentine government for their charter flight. The ship 670 00:38:51,120 --> 00:38:53,840 Speaker 1: sat at port, then cruised around the Caribbean with a 671 00:38:53,880 --> 00:38:58,200 Speaker 1: skeleton crew of similarly marooned employees and passengers before the 672 00:38:58,239 --> 00:39:01,000 Speaker 1: couple was moved to another cruise ship and finally put 673 00:39:01,000 --> 00:39:04,200 Speaker 1: on a flight home. The depinios were among the passengers 674 00:39:04,239 --> 00:39:07,800 Speaker 1: who disembarked on April third at nine forty five a m. 675 00:39:07,960 --> 00:39:11,120 Speaker 1: In their masks, they walked down the Rotterdam's gangway and 676 00:39:11,200 --> 00:39:15,400 Speaker 1: onto specially sealed buses. Police cars and motorcycles were waiting 677 00:39:15,440 --> 00:39:18,200 Speaker 1: to escort them to the airport. As the couple were 678 00:39:18,239 --> 00:39:20,800 Speaker 1: boarding the crowded coach, they met a woman who was 679 00:39:20,840 --> 00:39:24,080 Speaker 1: also headed back to their hometown of Warren Township, New Jersey. 680 00:39:24,600 --> 00:39:26,680 Speaker 1: The three were all on the same twelve fifteen p 681 00:39:26,840 --> 00:39:29,640 Speaker 1: m charter flight to Atlanta, and when it landed, they 682 00:39:29,640 --> 00:39:32,680 Speaker 1: found themselves not in a sealed bus but a bustling 683 00:39:32,680 --> 00:39:36,120 Speaker 1: international airport. They were starving and had a few hours 684 00:39:36,160 --> 00:39:39,680 Speaker 1: before their commercial flight to New York City in a days. 685 00:39:39,719 --> 00:39:42,960 Speaker 1: Wearing their masks and cheap surgical gloves, they sat at 686 00:39:42,960 --> 00:39:46,080 Speaker 1: a bar and ordered burghers. Rick made sure to warn 687 00:39:46,080 --> 00:39:49,400 Speaker 1: their waiter Tony where they'd come from. We're in the 688 00:39:49,440 --> 00:39:53,640 Speaker 1: general population. No one's wearing masks. Rick remembers, as far 689 00:39:53,640 --> 00:39:56,239 Speaker 1: as Holland America was concerned, it was as if we 690 00:39:56,320 --> 00:39:58,560 Speaker 1: somehow got cleansed of the virus when we were up 691 00:39:58,560 --> 00:40:02,600 Speaker 1: in the air. Ashford defends the use of commercial flights, 692 00:40:02,640 --> 00:40:05,520 Speaker 1: not just because the cruise line followed c DC guidelines. 693 00:40:06,360 --> 00:40:08,920 Speaker 1: In contrast to random people on a flight, who do 694 00:40:09,000 --> 00:40:11,440 Speaker 1: you think is safer? They were in their room for 695 00:40:11,480 --> 00:40:15,000 Speaker 1: two weeks, checked with all the protocols we had, He says, 696 00:40:15,600 --> 00:40:18,160 Speaker 1: That's about the safest group on the plane in my opinion. 697 00:40:18,840 --> 00:40:23,000 Speaker 1: To Rick Depino, though it felt jarring and irresponsible in 698 00:40:23,040 --> 00:40:25,520 Speaker 1: the morning, they were treating us with hazmat suits. He 699 00:40:25,600 --> 00:40:29,120 Speaker 1: remembers thinking, and now we're sitting at a bar eating burgers. 700 00:40:29,920 --> 00:40:33,200 Speaker 1: The CDC would change its guidance the next day forbidding 701 00:40:33,239 --> 00:40:35,960 Speaker 1: the use of commercial flights or public transportation to get 702 00:40:35,960 --> 00:40:39,239 Speaker 1: passengers home. Cruise lines have yet to find a way 703 00:40:39,239 --> 00:40:41,799 Speaker 1: to repatriate the tens of thousands of crew members still 704 00:40:41,880 --> 00:40:45,960 Speaker 1: languishing on its ships. Over the next few weeks, Rick 705 00:40:46,000 --> 00:40:49,080 Speaker 1: would wonder whether he'd gotten COVID nineteen on the cruise. 706 00:40:49,600 --> 00:40:52,160 Speaker 1: He hadn't felt ill at any point, but he knew 707 00:40:52,200 --> 00:40:55,360 Speaker 1: cases could be asymptomatic, and five of the six friends 708 00:40:55,400 --> 00:40:57,600 Speaker 1: he had kept in touch with from the Zendam ended 709 00:40:57,680 --> 00:41:00,879 Speaker 1: up testing positive. He wondered about the people who sat 710 00:41:01,000 --> 00:41:03,480 Speaker 1: near him on the flight to New York. He tried, 711 00:41:03,600 --> 00:41:07,000 Speaker 1: unsuccessfully to contact Tony at the airport bar to make 712 00:41:07,000 --> 00:41:10,319 Speaker 1: sure he hadn't since gotten sick. In late April, he 713 00:41:10,400 --> 00:41:13,440 Speaker 1: and Wendy got COVID nineteen antibody tests to see if 714 00:41:13,440 --> 00:41:19,160 Speaker 1: they'd had the disease. Both came back positive. With Austin Carr, 715 00:41:19,239 --> 00:41:23,399 Speaker 1: Jonathan Levin, and Tasia Sipahutar. Check out this story and more. 716 00:41:23,560 --> 00:41:26,560 Speaker 1: It's in this week's edition of the Bloomberg Business Week magazine, 717 00:41:26,560 --> 00:41:29,600 Speaker 1: on newsstands, online, and on the Bloomberg Terminal. I'm Carol 718 00:41:29,640 --> 00:41:32,520 Speaker 1: Masser and I'm Jason Kelly. Check us out every day 719 00:41:32,560 --> 00:41:35,400 Speaker 1: on the radio Bloomberg business Week. It's live two pm 720 00:41:35,440 --> 00:41:38,440 Speaker 1: to six pm Wall Street Time. This is Bloomberg